GTA housing study: Region on the doorstep of compounding housing crisis. The time for bold action by governments is now.
September 25 2024 - 6:01AM
Greater Toronto Area, September 25, 2024 – The latest
Municipal Benchmarking Study from the Building Industry and Land
Development Association (BILD) reveals that the number of new homes
built in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is lagging significantly
behind population growth. The report, developed by Altus Group
Economic Consulting for BILD, also identifies that the region is
seeing a serious decline in development applications that
foreshadows a further deterioration of housing supply.
“The study shows that the gap between housing stock and
population growth in the GTA is the widest it has been in over 50
years,” said David Wilkes, President and CEO of BILD. “This a
bright red warning light on dashboard for all levels of
governments. Without bold steps, the housing crisis in the GTA is
going to get far worse in the years ahead.”
This is the third Municipal Benchmarking Study since 2020, and
the 2024 study identifies that, on average, municipal approvals for
new housing in the GTA take 20 months. Findings also show that each
month of delay adds $2,673 to $5,576 in added cost per unit per
month. Based on average approval timeframes, this adds between
$43,000 and $90,000 to the cost of a new home.
The study also quantifies the fees and charges that
municipalities add to the cost of a new home. In the GTA, fees,
taxes and charges from all levels of government account for almost
25 per cent of the cost of a new home for the new homebuyer.
Municipal fees and charges are a significant portion of that.
According to the study, municipal fees rose by an average of
$42,000 per unit on low-rise developments and $32,000 on high-rise
units since 2022. On average, municipal fees now add $122,387 to
the cost of a condominium and $164,920 to the cost of a
single-family home in the GTA.
"The GTA housing market faces structural challenges that have
driven up construction costs, including unattainably high
government fees and taxes – which are among the highest in Canada,"
said Wilkes. "To improve housing affordability, governments must
act to accelerate approvals and reduce the overall tax burden they
are placing on new home buyers. Without bold and immediate action,
the region’s housing crisis will be exacerbated, leading to fewer
housing starts, reduced jobs, and compounded affordability issues
in the years ahead."
Click here to download the full 2024 Municipal Benchmarking
Study.
Report Background:This is the third edition of BILD’s
municipal benchmarking report. Previous versions were published in
2022 (download here) and 2020 (download here).
The study looks at 16 different GTA municipalities over a
two-year term: Toronto, Vaughan, Markham, Richmond Hill, Brampton,
Mississauga, Caledon, Oakville, Burlington, Milton, Whitby, Oshawa,
Clarington, Barrie, Innisfil, and Bradford West Gwillimbury.
About BILD:With 1,200 member companies, BILD is the voice
of the home building, residential and non-residential land
development and professional renovation industries in the Greater
Toronto Area. The building and renovation industry provides 256,000
jobs in the region and $39.3 billion in investment value. BILD is
affiliated with the Ontario and Canadian Home Builders’
Associations.
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For additional information or to schedule an interview, contact
Janis McCulloch at jmcculloch@bildgta.ca or 416-617-7994.
- GTA housing study: Region on the doorstep of compounding
housing crisis. The time for bold action by governments is
now.
- 2024 Greater Toronto Area Municipal Benchmarking Study
John Provenzano
Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD)
4166443912
jprovenzano@bildgta.ca