RC121 NovDec 2025 - Magazine - Page 41
TORONTO
Housing Summit 5.0 by Grant Cameron
TAXES, FEES, RED TAPE and inaction at the
municipal level continue to weigh on the
residential construction industry and make
it near impossible for builders to construct
homes people can a昀昀ord.
That was the prevailing theme of industry
professionals and stakeholders who spoke
at a recent online housing summit hosted
by the Residential Construction Council of
Ontario (RESCON).
Exorbitant taxes and development charges
on new homes as well as regulatory hurdles
are pushing a昀昀ordability out of reach and
adding to the housing supply and a昀昀ordability crisis, they said.
“Many of the things that impacted housing
years ago are enduring and remain unresolved,” noted RESCON president Richard Lyall. “If we are to realize meaningful ways to deal
with the housing crisis, these issues must 昀椀nally
be e昀昀ectively addressed—and they can be.”
While there has been some action taken to
address the challenges, speakers highlighted
a deep chasm between what government
has promised and the realities of the housing
market.
Marlon Bray, executive vice president of
Clark Construction Management, said the Ontario government’s promise to build 1.5 million
homes between 2023 and 2031 doesn’t make
sense and will fall far short of the target.
“There’s not a chance in hell we are building 1.5 million homes. It basically de昀椀es any
form of logic. It’s a made-up number that is
meaningless.”
”RESCON’s Housing Summit is dedicated to addressing the most pressing
issues in the ongoing housing crisis. This year the summit focused on
process, “Embracing Transformation: Building Homes Faster.”
Jason Mercer, chief market analyst at
the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board,
explained that the Canadian economy is
slowing due mainly to a decline in exports
and unemployment is rising.
The silver lining, he said, is that there are
plenty of waiting buyers and another interest
rate cut is expected before the end of the year
which will help a昀昀ordability.
Ontario Housing Minister Rob Flack told
the summit that the market is essentially at a
standstill, largely because of the economic uncertainty caused by events south of the border.
Flack also said it takes too long and costs
too much to get housing built today and the
government is focused—through measures
such as Bill 17 which was passed earlier
this year to tackle problems. The legislation
defers development charges on new homes
until the dwelling is occupied.
“It can take years in Ontario and that
has to change,” said Flack, referring to the
approvals process.
Alberta Municipal A昀昀airs Minister Dan
Williams outlined some of the actions the
western province has taken to get municipalities to eliminate excessive fees and streamline the approvals system.
Alberta leads the province in new housing
starts, with nearly 28,000 homes underway
in the 昀椀rst half of 2025.
Williams said housing is critical to the economic well-being of Alberta and the government mindset is to get shovels in the ground
quicker through faster approvals by using its
authority to reduce bureaucracy and barriers
to construction of housing and incentivize
municipalities to build.
“We believe that Albertans should have an
opportunity at home ownership,” he said.
In Ontario, though, Lyall said the tax
burden is still too high and the approvals
process is too slow while ever-increasing
building costs and a host of other issues
continue to plague supply.
“If we are to realize meaningful ways
to deal with the housing crisis these issues
must 昀椀nally be e昀昀ectively addressed - and
they can be,” he said. “It’s important that we
bring about these changes.”
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