The Government of Ontario is currently working on a Housing Supply Action Plan that they hope will address “the barriers getting in the way of new ownership and rental housing.”
Through initial consultations, they have already identified 5 key themes (my words below):
- The approvals/entitlement process for new housing is too slow
- There are too many restrictions on what is allowed to be built (that is, we should be encouraging more “gentle density” and “missing middle” type infill)
- Development costs are too high
- Tenants need protection; regulation is making it increasingly difficult to be a small landlord
- Overall housing innovation
The province is also looking for public input and is currently running this online survey. It is open until January 25, 2019. And I would encourage all of you to complete it and help shape the action plan.
My understanding is that the plan should be ready by Q2-2019.
