Housing crisis to get ‘far worse’ without ‘bold steps’ as new builds lag behind population growth: BILD

The gap between the number of new homes built and population growth in the Greater Toronto Area is the widest in more than 50 years, a new report says.

“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,” said David Wilkes, president and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD).

The association released its latest municipal benchmarking study Wednesday, which also said that the region is seeing a decline in development applications. That “foreshadows a further deterioration of housing supply,” BILD said in a media release.

The association said it takes on average 20 months for municipal approvals for new housing in the GTA.

Credit: BILD / Altus Group

And each month of delay adds $2,673 to $5,576 in cost per unit per month, meaning that based on average approval times, it adds between $43,000 and $90,000 to the cost of a new home.

The report also looked at the charges and fees that municipalities add to the cost of a new home; in the GTA, fees, taxes and charges from all levels of government make up almost 25 per cent of the cost of a new home for the buyer, BILD said.

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“Municipal fees and charges are a significant portion of that,” BILD said.

“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.”

In the GTA, municipal fees add on average, $122,387 to the cost of a condominium and $164,920 to the cost of a single-family home, the association said.

‘Unattainably high government fees and taxes’

“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,” Wilkes said.

“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.”

To read the full report, click here.