Why Toronto has among the slowest housing development approval times in GTA
The City of Toronto has among the fewest planners and some of the longest approval timelines for residential development applications of 18 regional municipalities — factors that contribute to the high cost of housing, according to a new benchmarking study by the home construction industry.
It shows that only Innisfil and Aurora had fewer planners on their municipal staff when measured per 1,000 housing starts. Only Bradford-West Gwillimbury and Caledon surpassed Toronto’s 21-month average approval time. Other municipalities such as Oshawa, Innisfil, Burlington, Oakville and Barrie had average development approvals of nine to 12 months.
The City of Toronto has among the fewest planners and some of the longest approval timelines for residential development applications of 18 regional municipalities — factors that contribute to the high cost of housing, according to a new benchmarking study by the home construction industry.
It shows that only Innisfil and Aurora had fewer planners on their municipal staff when measured per 1,000 housing starts. Only Bradford-West Gwillimbury and Caledon surpassed Toronto’s 21-month average approval time. Other municipalities such as Oshawa, Innisfil, Burlington, Oakville and Barrie had average development approvals of nine to 12 months.
Studies suggest Toronto’s rental shortage will skyrocket in coming years
A new report suggesting the Greater Toronto Area could be facing a shortage of 200,000 rental apartments within a decade is highlighting the conundrum of a region that is building more high-rise apartment buildings than anywhere else in North America but still has a stubbornly unaffordable housing market.
The report – prepared by real estate research firm Urbanation Inc. for the Federation of Rental-Housing Providers of Ontario – says rapid population growth in Ontario means the rental market needs to expand faster than its current capacity: “42,000 units [need] to be built annually during the 15-year period from 2017 to 2031, but will be delivering approximately 21,000 units per year, resulting in a shortfall of over 20,000 units per year.”
A new report suggesting the Greater Toronto Area could be facing a shortage of 200,000 rental apartments within a decade is highlighting the conundrum of a region that is building more high-rise apartment buildings than anywhere else in North America but still has a stubbornly unaffordable housing market.
The report – prepared by real estate research firm Urbanation Inc. for the Federation of Rental-Housing Providers of Ontario – says rapid population growth in Ontario means the rental market needs to expand faster than its current capacity: “42,000 units [need] to be built annually during the 15-year period from 2017 to 2031, but will be delivering approximately 21,000 units per year, resulting in a shortfall of over 20,000 units per year.”
2019 Ontario Rental Market Study: Revisiting the Supply Gap & Opportunities for Development
The rental housing supply gap in Ontario has quickly grown to a level that is twice as high as originally projected a few years ago. Factors such as outsized economic growth in the province, reduced homeownership rates, and much stronger than anticipated increases in the population pushed the demand for rental housing well above 40,000 units per year as the decade came to a close.
Net migration to Ontario has been a particularly large contributor to the upward adjustment, having reached over 200,000 persons in each of the past two years — doubling the annual average recorded during the preceding five-year period.
The rental housing supply gap in Ontario has quickly grown to a level that is twice as high as originally projected a few years ago. Factors such as outsized economic growth in the province, reduced homeownership rates, and much stronger than anticipated increases in the population pushed the demand for rental housing well above 40,000 units per year as the decade came to a close. Net migration to Ontario has been a particularly large contributor to the upward adjustment, having reached over 200,000 persons in each of the past two years — doubling the annual average recorded during the preceding five-year period.