GUEST SUBMISSION: As a real estate developer with over 45 years of experience, I’ve witnessed the evolution of Canada’s housing market — and now, its collapse into a supply crisis.
I’m also a father of five children, aged 28 to 38, all impacted by this crisis. After decades in this industry, my desire to solve this issue burns stronger than ever.
I’ve coined the term Rental Residential Infrastructure (RRI) to emphasize the critical need for a national strategy to address rental housing. If I were the minister of housing, I’d focus on one priority: a federal RRI program aimed at building millions of purpose-built rental units.
Canada prides itself on providing affordable access to essentials like health care, food and shelter. Yet, when it comes to housing, we’ve fallen short. Canada ranks last among G7 countries in housing supply per capita, and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) estimates we need 3.5 million additional units by 2030 to achieve a balanced market.
A healthy RRI is as critical as other essential infrastructure like transportation and hospitals. Without it, we fail to provide secure, affordable housing for Canadians.
How did we get here?
The root of this issue is a long-standing imbalance between supply and demand.
During World War II, the Crown agency Wartime Housing Limited helped meet the housing demands of an exploding population — a program I’m familiar with because I grew up in wartime housing. In the 1970s and 1980s, government incentives like the Multiple Unit Residential Building Program (MURB) supported the development of purpose-built rental housing.
These initiatives built the housing infrastructure we needed. But starting in the 1990s, these incentives were removed, leading developers to focus on condos and properties for sale instead of rentals. As a result, we stopped building rental housing at scale. Between 1990 and 2015, only 426,000 rental units were built – far short of the 300,000 additional units now needed annually.
Meanwhile, Canada’s population grew by 3.2 per cent in 2023, the highest rate since the 1950s. This surge in demand, paired with historically low vacancy rates (1.5 per cent), has driven rents to unaffordable levels, particularly for young families.
Shelter is a basic human need, and we’ve failed to provide it.
Economics of development
As developers, we know how to build quality homes efficiently, but the economics aren’t always favourable.
Construction costs have risen 51 per cent since 2020, and high interest rates make borrowing expensive. Local governments impose fees and delays that can account for up to 20 per cent of a project’s cost. These barriers have stalled many projects.
I’ve spent decades navigating this bureaucracy.
Developers like myself are ready to help solve the problem, but we need governments to streamline the approval process and be more transparent. We are ready to build but need a stable, predictable regulatory environment.
A national solution: Rental residential infrastructure (RRI)
We need a national solution to this national problem. The federal government should introduce a RRI program focused on creating millions of purpose-built rental units.
History tells us that only national programs — such as MURB and Wartime Housing Limited — have led to the development of the thousands of units we desperately need today. Raising vacancy rates in strained markets to at least four per cent would create a more balanced housing market, stabilizing rents and improving affordability.
This must be a coordinated effort across all levels of government — federal, provincial and municipal, with developers and industry associations as trusted partners. Here’s how an effective RRI program could work:
- Prioritize Purpose-Built Rentals: Condos and townhomes won’t solve this crisis. The focus must be on stable, long-term affordable rental options.
- Collaborate Across Sectors: Government must work with organizations like the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) and provincial entities like the Urban Development Institute (UDI) to ensure developers can build efficiently without sacrificing quality.
- Streamline Approval Processes: Municipal red tape remains a significant obstacle. The federal government must work with local authorities to streamline approvals, reduce fees and set realistic design standards. We need a fast-tracked system for rental housing projects, ensuring projects move forward quickly while maintaining construction and environmental safety standards.
- Improve Transparency: CMHC’s National Housing Strategy should set clearer rental housing targets in major markets. Programs like the Apartment Construction Loan Program (ACLP) and MLI Select should be expanded with incentives that encourage developers to break ground faster.
Conclusion: A unified effort
Solving Canada’s housing crisis requires a co-ordinated national strategy. A purpose-built rental housing program is the only viable solution.
We need all players to get on board and work together to rebuild our RRI. This is about ensuring that every Canadian has access to affordable, secure shelter.
For the sake of generations to come, let’s get this built.
