Statement on Morneau-Sousa-Tory Meeting on Housing Affordability

“Today’s meeting was a very good opportunity for all three levels of government to share and review each other’s real estate data. It is surprising and risky that we do not have a single, trusted, collective source of real estate data to help guide policy decision making. When it comes to something as important as the real estate industry and the value of your home, we need to ensure that policy decisions are being based on the facts.

I have enjoyed meeting with Premier Wynne, Minister Sousa and Mayor Tory over the last several weeks to discuss Ontario’s Realtors' ideas on affordable home ownership. I commend them for their thoughtful approach and for working with industry leaders to get the best advice on dealing with rapidly rising home prices.

It is encouraging to see this kind of effort and attention being paid to Ontario’s housing challenge, but it is critical that we do not lose sight of the underlying supply problem affecting home affordability. Ultimately, the best solution to rapidly rising home prices is increasing the supply of listings and new homes in hot markets across Ontario like the GTA.”