The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, Feb. 23, edition that Canada's ban on foreign purchases of residential property is creating barriers to construction of new rental housing. The Globe's Frances Bula and Rachelle Younglai write that the ban, which is set to last for two years, has already led to the cancellation of hundreds of commercial property deals because the law's definition of residential property includes land that is zoned for residential or mixed use. As well, the rules specify that no more than 3 per cent of any money going to a residential purchase can come from a foreign source. Developers and real estate experts, however, say the new rules are hampering development of rental apartments, which the federal government has said is critical to help deal with the shortage of affordable housing. The ban also makes it hard for developers to start acquiring individual homes for land assemblies, since those homes fall under the category of banned types of purchases. Lawyers and brokers say the law has proven to be a stumbling block for many developers trying to arrange tens or hundreds of millions of dollars in financing for new projects. Colliers International's Kirk Kuester, says he knows of at least four major projects in the Vancouver region with at least 500 rental units among them that have been affected by the ban.