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The target of 1.5 million new homes was set out in the report of Ontario’s Housing Affordability Task Force (HATF) in February, and was confirmed in a report by Smart Prosperity Institute (SPI) this month. For context, building 1.5 million new homes in a decade will require increasing the number of annual housing starts in Ontario by 50 per cent over the highest number we have been able to achieve since 1987 — approximately 100,000 in 2021 — and maintaining that level for 10 years. According to SPI, the need for homes will be greatest in the GTA, with Peel Region needing to build 277,000 new homes, Toronto, 259,000 and York, 180,100.

To help support these ambitious targets, the Building Industry and Land Development Association and the Ontario Home Builders’ Association earlier this month released a five-point plan for consideration by the provincial and municipal governments. The priorities in the plan were based on the recommendations of HATF and forward-thinking initiatives intended to lower housing costs, increase housing supply and bring balance to the housing market. The five points were:

1. Making homes more affordable by speeding up approval times and eliminating red tape. Each month of delay in approvals adds thousands of dollars to the cost of a new home.

2. Adding certainty to the cost of building a new home by addressing out-of-control development fees. Fees and taxes from all levels of government account for up to 25 per cent of the cost of a new home.

3. Making new lands available to build new housing and support future growth, as home supply and costs are highly dependent on land availability.

4. Laying the infrastructure groundwork for future growth by ensuring servicing and transportation infrastructure is prioritized.

5. Taking the politics out of planning to ensure that local decision-making does not undermine the provision of new housing.

These recommendations would help speed up the delivery of new homes, reduce the costs incurred by individual new homeowners and ensure that new communities have the infrastructure they need to support growth.

We know what we need to do to address the issue of housing supply and affordability in Ontario and in the GTA. Every year we delay making the necessary changes simply adds to the challenges we will face in the future. Now is the time for bold, concerted action on housing.

In the lead-up to the municipal election on Monday, Oct. 24, all residents of Ontario, especially those in the GTA, need to ask their candidates how they will champion concrete steps to address the housing challenge.

David Wilkes is President and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) and a contributor for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: