@ThinkRightGM: I think expanding supply is definitely part of the solution (I don't have much tolerance for the NIMBYism from many in the detached neighborhoods of Vancouver proper). 

Re: CMHC, I don't think taxpayers should be off the hook. But I do think, since tax $ are at stake, strict lending standards should be enforced - particularly since those increased mortgage insurance premium revenues in the 21st C are the product of an explosion in the amount of insured mortgages out there. As we move towards $1T in taxpayer-guaranteed mortgage debt, I don't want to find out the risk analysis was crummy or that banks were lending sloppily as things fall apart and insurance payouts start to go up. I want the banks kept on their toes and I want them to be liable if they haven't loaned money carefully. And, while acknowledging foreign $ influence, I also view the massive expansion of taxpayer-backed mortgages in this low rate environment as another key driver of the affordability crisis.