Canada Housing Market

Ontario is still falling far short of its housing construction targets, despite adding new categories to the way housing starts are counted.

Premier Doug Ford has set a goal of building 1.5 million new homes by 2031 to address the province’s ongoing housing crisis. However, updated government data shows only 94,753 housing starts were recorded in 2024, well below the 125,000 starts needed last year to stay on track, and far from the 150,000 required in 2025 and 175,000 in 2026.

How the Government is Counting Housing Starts

The province’s 2024 total includes:

• 73,462 traditional housing starts
• 14,381 additional residential units
• 2,278 long-term care beds
• 2,807 post-secondary student housing beds
• 1,825 retirement home suites

Even with these additional categories, the total remains far below target. In 2023, Ontario reported meeting its goal by counting long-term care beds, but 2024 marks a significant drop.

The Situation in 2025 So Far

This year is also off to a slow start. In the first quarter of 2025, housing starts were at their lowest level since 2009. Industry experts say low home sales, a key predictor of new construction, are contributing to the slowdown.

The Building Industry and Land Development Association warns that up to 40% of the construction workforce could face layoffs if demand doesn’t rebound.

What’s Holding Back Housing Construction?

Several challenges are impacting Ontario’s housing starts, including:

• High construction costs
• Low consumer confidence
• Rising interest rates
• Municipal development fees that add to the final cost of homes

Industry leaders are calling for measures such as temporarily expanding the GST/HST New Housing Rebate and reducing development charges to help bring down costs.

Progress and Incentives

The Ontario government says it is investing in infrastructure and offering municipalities funding to accelerate construction. The Building Faster Fund rewards municipalities that meet at least 80% of their housing targets.

In 2024, just 23 out of 50 municipalities hit that benchmark, down from 32 the previous year.

The Bigger Picture

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) estimates 4.8 million new homes are needed across the country over the next decade to restore affordability. For Ontario, that means building more than 2 million homes in the same timeframe.

Housing advocates say more “gentle density”, such as allowing fourplexes in residential neighborhoods, and increased support for affordable, non-profit, and co-op housing could help bridge the gap.

For now, Ontario’s housing shortfall continues to grow, leaving a generation of young buyers uncertain about their chances of ever owning a home.

source Ontario records low housing starts, even with new ways of counting them | CBC News

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