They took C$30 billion, locked it up, and are grinning while investors twiddle their thumbs like idiots.
BREAKING NEWS: Almost 40% of Canadian Real Estate investment funds are stopping investors from pulling their money out due to the Canadian housing market collapse. pic.twitter.com/L0vKvLy4qZ
— Darth Powell (@VladTheInflator) January 12, 2026
Factcheck:
Yes, the claim has basis in recent reports. Bloomberg and others note that about C$30B (roughly 40% of C$80B in such funds) is locked due to halted redemptions amid Canada’s housing downturn. Prices are declining (e.g., 3-4.5% forecasted drops in major cities per Royal LePage), though some experts predict stabilization in 2026. Sources vary on severity.
Real Estate Funds Locked Down: What Canadian Investors Need to Know
You probably thought you were playing it safe. For two decades, real estate funds Canada felt like a guaranteed win—a perfect mix of steady monthly income and the rock-solid security of brick and mortar.
But the script has flipped. Right now, across the country, the exit doors are bolted shut.
An estimated C$30 billion sits trapped inside private real estate funds. That’s nearly 40% of the entire sector’s capital, locked away from the very people who own it. The industry calls this “gating.” But for retirees like Andre El-Baba, who watched his $2 million investment in Romspen turn into a trapped asset, it feels more like a prison.
https://www.overheretoronto.com/real-estate-funds-canada-frozen-withdrawals-2026/
Canadians Are Furious After Real Estate Funds Lock Up Their Money
January 12, 2026 • Paula Sambo
Andre El-Baba never imagined an investment fund could trap him.
A lifelong property manager from Vancouver, he’d spent decades navigating real estate markets and thought he understood risk. So when he put money into Romspen Mortgage Investment Fund in 2022, it felt like a safe, sensible choice. Such private real estate funds had become a popular way for Canadians to invest in developing new houses and condominiums, riding a construction boom that had lasted two decades. They offered solid returns, regular payments and the ability to cash out at will.
Then the gate slammed shut.
Not long after he and his father invested a combined C$2 million ($1.5 million), Romspen announced it was blocking withdrawals—a last-resort tactic that lets funds avoid selling assets when too many clients want to pull out their money. The principal Andre assumed would always be within reach was suddenly sealed off, with no timeline for release. He’s getting only a thin, 2% stream of monthly income in return—far less than expected. Every month, Andre’s account statements tell the same story: The cash is still there, but he can’t move it.
“It’s been terrible,” said El-Baba, 47. “It’s not small change for us. It’s a lot of money.” Romspen did not respond to multiple requests for comment from Bloomberg.