As homeownership becomes harder to achieve in Ontario as a result of rising prices and intense market demand, the conversation around creating more homes as a solution has become more prevalent.
In February, Ontario’s Housing Affordability Task Force released its official report which detailed five key areas that focus on improving home affordability in the province. One of the highlights from the 33-page report includes the creation of 1.5 million homes in the next decade. The document also outlines specific recommendations that could have a significant effect on the development and construction of new homes in Ontario.
“When the findings from the Task Force report were released, it was a positive sign that their approach was finally about supply rather than trying to ‘cool’ the market,” said Onkar Dhillon, vice president of operations at TCS Marketing Systems.
“There were some good recommendations that will help speed up approvals and allow for the creation of more multi-residential living. For policy makers and as an industry we need to ensure that affordability for new home buyers remains a major priority,” he added.
Dhillon explains that developments in Ontario have historically faced obstacles with approvals and finding buildable land. After the introduction of the Greenbelt, it became a challenge for builders to source developable areas, the scarcity of which continues to drive up base prices. Ontario’s approval process has also led to project cancellations, leaving pre-construction purchasers in limbo.
The Task Force’s report establishes 55 recommendations to reduce red tape and lower development costs which would help to build more housing. Generally, the report focuses on “more density, further consultation efficiencies,” according to Dhillon.
For example, in order to limit opposition and politicization of housing projects, the Task Force suggests establishing province-wide zoning standards in addition to exempting all projects of 10 units or less from site plan approval and public consultation. The recommendations call for “as-of-right “ zoning applicable to buildings up to four units and four storeys on a single residential lot, and for structures between six to 11 storeys on any streets utilized by public transit.
“Just these two [policies] alone should signal that there is more supply on the way and there will be more product available,” said Dhillon. “The pricing of this will remain challenging for some due the record prices we are seeing on all types of transactions. So while this plan is in place to bring on more supply, it remains to be seen how affordable it will be.”
In new construction specifically, the benchmark price for a new single-family home in the GTA recently soared 35.3 per cent over 12 months to $1,858,713 in February, according to the latest from the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). Remaining inventory for the same product type also hit a record-low of 546 units in the same month.
To reduce red tape, the Task Force put forward suggestions to remove the right of appeal for projects with at least 30 per cent affordable housing for a minimum of 40 years, and require a $10,000 fee for third-party appeals. Recommendations have also been made to digitize and modernize the approvals processes while funding adoption of e-permitting systems.
Dhillon explains that quicker approval timelines will help the process of bringing supply to the market. However, labour shortages, weather and supply chain challenges continue to be sticking points when building new projects. Despite this, Toronto continues to have the most active cranes in North America, a sign that the industry is building as fast as it can, he said.
“I think the approvals process will eliminate fears of projects getting cancelled and give new-home buyers more confidence in buying pre-construction, a product often associated with primarily investors,” said Dhillon. “These recommendations are a great starting point, but we have to see some of them in motion and in the context of removing barriers to entry in the housing market.”
Following the publication of the Task Force’s recommendations, demand for Ontario housing is only expected to grow in the coming years.
In a research paper published in late 2021, the Smart Prosperity Institute stated that Ontario needs to provide one million new residences within the next decade in order to meet demand for the 2.27 million people that will join the population. Canada will also welcome a record number of immigrants, with a target of over 431,000 newcomers in 2022 and more than 447,000 in 2023, which will keep demand for housing going.
“The need for more housing supply was present before the pandemic and continues to grow,” said Dhillon.
