The government of Ontario is trying to encourage the construction of a lot of new housing over the next 10 years. More specifically, the plan is for 1.5 million new homes from now until 2033. To have a chance at hitting this target, the province has rightly recognized that some things will need to change around here and so they've been busy coming up with legislative changes such as Bill 23 (the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022).

The Bill is really long, so I personally appreciate it when the act name itself does a good job of summarizing what it's all about: more homes, built faster. But if you'd like to read the entire thing, you can do that over here. I also attended a breakfast this morning -- put on by Goodmans -- that provided a great summary of the key points. I took all of my notes on Twitter through a live stream, so if you'd like something more digestible, click here.

At a very high level, I would say that there are some obviously good changes in the Bill and some other things that will need refinement, such as the proposed changes around third-party appeals. The devil is in the details. And that was actually one of the key takeaways from the breakfast: This government is not afraid of being bold, moving quickly, and then working iteratively with stakeholders. It's a less typical approach for government, but done is better than perfect, right?

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):

1. The approvals/entitlement process for new housing is too slow

2. 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)

3. Development costs are too high

4. Tenants need protection; regulation is making it increasingly difficult to be a small landlord

5. 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.

The government of Ontario is trying to encourage the construction of a lot of new housing over the next 10 years. More specifically, the plan is for 1.5 million new homes from now until 2033. To have a chance at hitting this target, the province has rightly recognized that some things will need to change around here and so they've been busy coming up with legislative changes such as Bill 23 (the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022).

The Bill is really long, so I personally appreciate it when the act name itself does a good job of summarizing what it's all about: more homes, built faster. But if you'd like to read the entire thing, you can do that over here. I also attended a breakfast this morning -- put on by Goodmans -- that provided a great summary of the key points. I took all of my notes on Twitter through a live stream, so if you'd like something more digestible, click here.

At a very high level, I would say that there are some obviously good changes in the Bill and some other things that will need refinement, such as the proposed changes around third-party appeals. The devil is in the details. And that was actually one of the key takeaways from the breakfast: This government is not afraid of being bold, moving quickly, and then working iteratively with stakeholders. It's a less typical approach for government, but done is better than perfect, right?

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):

1. The approvals/entitlement process for new housing is too slow

2. 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)

3. Development costs are too high

4. Tenants need protection; regulation is making it increasingly difficult to be a small landlord

5. 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.