We Must Speed Up Approvals for New Housing

Late American writer Mark Twain once commented that, “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”

He was right.

When it comes to the dire housing supply and affordability crisis facing our nation, it is imperative that we take the necessary steps to expedite the sloth-like planning approvals process.

The red tape that builders must go through to get shovels in the ground is ridiculous. The development and permit approvals processes are slow and significantly add to the cost of housing.

Presently, projects in the City of Toronto are supposed to be cleared in 90 days. However, the application approval timeline is taking an average of 25 months, according to a study done by Altus Group for the Canadian Home Builders’ Association. The study ranks Toronto in second-last place among 23 municipalities across Canada. Only Hamilton is worse at 31 months. 

Many GTA municipalities were at the bottom of the list, including Markham at 23 months, Pickering at 17, and Brampton at 14.

Bottom line?

The results of the study show that Ontario municipalities are far behind their counterparts in other parts of the country when it comes to the efficiency of planning standards and processes.

The study also ranked municipalities by the number of documents for an application submission. Again, Toronto is in the unenviable position of being the second worst of eight major municipalities, with as many as 62 documents required per application. Hamilton was worse at 93.

The study certainly provides some insight into why people may be leaving Toronto and Ontario for greener pastures elsewhere.

Government Has Promised Reforms

In the runup to the election in Ontario, Premier Doug Ford promised to bring in reforms to speed up the cumbersome permitting and approvals process. 

Provincial Housing Minister Rob Flack recently reiterated that commitment, declaring that Ontario must lower fees, speed up approval times and make sure we have the talent in place to build homes faster.

The minister’s statement is clear and on point. We are looking forward to him cutting the housing supply Gordian knot.

Delays at the approvals stage only stymie construction and new development and add significant project financing costs to housing which are ultimately borne by consumers.

To expedite the process, we need to make municipalities more accountable when it comes to approvals. A system that delays approvals by years does not work for developers, builders or consumers.

Sunlight is the best medicine. More transparency in the system would make municipalities more accountable.

For starters, we suggest that municipalities should be required to publicly report and post quarterly development approval metrics, so the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing can audit and more accurately monitor whether a municipality is meeting legislated timeframes.

Should a municipality be unable to meet the timeframes, the province should require the municipality to undergo a third-party regulatory overview to re-evaluate how it conducts its internal development and bring it into compliance.  

Delays Add to the Cost of Housing

The provincial More Homes for Everyone Act, known as Bill 109, created mechanisms to encourage prompt review and approvals, but it was repealed. As a result, we have protracted planning processes that delay construction and add significant project financing costs to projects. 

Planning approvals processes have timelines established by the provincial government, yet they are not enforced or adhered to at the municipal level. The Ontario Land Tribunal can also adjudicate matters related to land use planning should a municipality fail to make a timely decision or reject an application, but this too is a lengthy and costly an option to pursue.

Some municipalities have opted to put pre-application consultation requirements in place to speed up the application process, but they have only created more barriers.

The urgency of speeding up approvals should not be underestimated. It is critical that we take action.

Ontario housing starts between January and March 2025 were 38 per cent lower than during the same period in 2024. Toronto starts were down about 58 per cent during the same periods.

Urbanation reported recently that there were only two condo projects in the entire GTHA that launched for presales last quarter. The trend started at the beginning of 2024 of projects being put on hold, cancelled, placed in receivership, or converted to purpose-built rental. 

The Fraser Institute recently published a report which indicated that without an acceleration in homebuilding, a slowdown in population growth, or both, Canada’s housing affordability crisis will likely persist. 

It is therefore urgent that we get the ball rolling on solutions.