The key barrier in our…

The key barrier in our Northern Ontario Municipality is a result of an influx of residents from Southern Ontario, who are overbidding on homes by a significant amount, causing prices to be out of reach for our locals. Housing prices have become unaffordable and continue to skyrocket.

https://creastats.crea.ca/board/noba
https://blog.remax.ca/north-bay-housing-market-prices-continue-to-trend…

The number of residents moving north has caused a panic in our surrounding municipalities to get building, in an attempt to meet the demand for housing in our area. In speaking with developers, the cost to construct housing is up to $400-450 per square foot in our area, due to rising prices in lumber and a shortfall of material, all associated with the COVID-19 Pandemic. A single-detached dwelling has escalated in price from $500,000 two years ago, to now $700,000+. We have heard from many locals, some with higher paying positions and net family incomes of +200K who are unable to afford and find suitable housing.

Developers in our Municipality are attempting to maximize their revenues, and constructing the homes that will yield the most profit. They are not interested in constructing homes that are more affordable (i.e. townhouse style, semi-detached, etc.). Additionally, after speaking to an individual who took advantage of the not-for-profit housing funding, it is no longer providing enough incentive for the projects to be worthwhile. A developer will not take these projects on since there is no financial benefit to do so.

In my opinion, more and better affordability of material would assist in bringing the costs down. There is also a significant labour shortage due to aging baby boomers, which is also causing hourly rates for labourers to rise. These are issues that are out of provincial and municipal control, however I do believe we need to be advocating for better management of these issues.

Perhaps it is a requirement for developers to dedicate a minimum amount of new housing supply to be under a certain price point or square footage, to encourage more affordable housing?

Perhaps its a loan/grant program that receives applications for affordable housing projects to get them started, or incentives to developers who meet a specific target of affordable housing. Affordable being not low-income, but a reasonable price for a home in our area.

The Planning Act timeframes for processing applications is not an issue in Northern Ontario. We don't have the backlog that is seen in other high-growth areas. In my opinion, these recommended changes will have no effect on the affordability/supply of housing in Northern Ontario.