Ontario On-Track to Becoming Most Pro-Housing Jurisdiction in Canada with New Bill

Ontario is in a housing affordability crisis, and we need bold action to save the dream of home ownership for future generations. The Government of Ontario’s newly announced More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022 is just what the doctor ordered when it comes to getting more homes for families built faster right across the Province.

Today, the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) is pleased to see the Ford Government acting on several REALTOR®-led supply solutions. We need more homes built that hard-working Ontarians can afford – and we need them now. These steps will get them built:

• Rolling back exclusionary zoning - Allowing three units per lot as-of-right is a good first step towards rolling back exclusionary zoning that prevents young families from buying a home in the neighborhood they grew up in. Realtors were one of the first groups to champion ending exclusionary zoning and we are eager to work with the Province to expand it further in the future.
• Lowering fees for new home buyers – Exempting affordable housing units from development charges and freezing or reducing other charges will help spur more home construction and reduce costs for families.
• Pushing back on NIMBY forces – Groups who oppose all new housing, often for discriminatory reasons, have become too influential under Ontario’s current planning rules, holding back thousands of homes for families in almost every community. This new legislation reduces the influence of NIMBY groups by limiting tactics that delay, cancel and drive up the prices of homes such as third-party appeals for planning matters. These changes are long overdue.

The over 50 actions in the More Homes Built Faster Act (MHBFA) will go a long way to reversing declining rates of home ownership in Ontario. But more can and should be done. Most of the homes built thanks to the MHBFA will take years to build. Families need help now.

Ontario should give first-time home buyers immediate relief by eliminating the punishing land transfer tax for first-time buyers, or increasing the existing rebate. This tax adds thousands of dollars to a young buyer’s closing costs and increasing the rebate would help hundreds of struggling families today.

- Tim Hudak, CEO of the Ontario Real Estate Association