Tale of two cities: Why Edmonton builds homes faster than Toronto
Compared to May, the annual rate of housing starts was largely flat with a 0.4 per cent increase, but it rose 14 per cent compared to this time last year.
The national numbers mask stark regional disparities, however.
'Through the first six months of the year, national housing starts have increased marginally compared to 2024, however, new home construction varies significantly across Canada,' said Kevin Hughes, deputy chief economist at CMHC.
Over the first six months of 2024, Edmonton started building 8,448 homes. That compares to 10,868 in the first six months this year — a jump of 29 per cent. Calgary also saw a significant improvement in the first six months of this year with a 32 per cent jump in housing starts to 14,712 compared to 11,178 in the first half of 2024.
Story continues below advertisement
'Calgary and Edmonton have just been streets ahead of other cities and (especially) a lot of cities in Ontario, for instance, in making their zoning bylaws simpler as well as less restrictive,' said Carolyn Whitzman, senior housing researcher and adjunct professor at University of Toronto School of Cities.
One of the biggest laggards when it comes to housing starts is the country's largest city. In the first months of 2024, Toronto started building 22,529 homes. This year, that number has dropped to 12,575 — a 44 per cent decline.
'Edmonton is one of the fastest cities in Canada when it comes to approving new housing and communities in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) are amongst the slowest. And that is certainly playing a role here,' said Mike Moffatt, founding director of the Missing Middle Initiative at the University of Ottawa.
'Toronto doesn't seem to be waking up and smelling the coffee,' Whitzman said, adding that cities such as Calgary and Edmonton end up with more housing starts because they prioritize building 'missing middle' housing.
In many Canadian cities, strict zoning laws mean developers can build either single-family homes or condo towers. Homes that are neither — such as sixplexes and fourplexes — are often referred to as the 'missing middle' by advocates and researchers.
Get daily National news
Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy
'Most of the homes that we've built over the last 40 or 50 years have been one of two varieties. They've been either single detached homes or they've been highrise condos. And both of those markets are having problems right now in our more expensive cities,' Moffatt said.
Story continues below advertisement
He added, 'Single detached homes have become so expensive, (many) middle class families can't afford them. And highrises serve a particular market and that's not really in demand right now.'
A large part of Edmonton's success comes down to its approach to zoning, Whitzman said, an issue where Toronto seems to lag. Last week, the city council voted against a zoning bylaw that would limit mid-block infills to a maximum of eight units.
'Toronto is still betting on big, big, big condos that aren't doing well,' she said. 'Last week, a proposal that had been agreed on with the federal government to OK six units as-of-right with no parking minimums got restricted to a relatively small part of the central city. That gives you a sense of different kinds of approaches that different cities are taking.'
Whitzman was referring to a Toronto city council decision that allowed the building of sixplexes in only nine city wards, with suburbs having the choice to opt in.
In the rest of southern Ontario, the housing starts data is a mixed bag, with cities such as Hamilton and Ottawa building more than they did last year while others are building less.,
Meanwhile, British Columbia has started building more houses in two of the most expensive markets in the country.
Vancouver saw 3,079 housing starts last month, compared to 1,767 in June last year, marking an increase of 74 per cent. Meanwhile, Victoria saw an increase of 187 per cent in housing starts. Whitzman said provincial support for the housing sector can be a major driver of housing starts.
Story continues below advertisement
B.C. is betting big on prefabricated or modular housing. In September last year, B.C. released a catalogue of pre-approved housing designs for prefab housing.
Pre-fabricated housing or prefab construction is a method of building where the bulk of the construction happens off-site, often in a facility like a factory. Either a fully-constructed modular home or parts of a house are then shipped off to the location, where it is assembled and connected to utilities.
'[B.C. has] got a much better sense of housing targets (compared to Ontario). It's providing much more funding to non-market developers. Some of the development in B.C., I can say with confidence, is non-market development, assisted by B.C.,' Whitzman said.
Next week, Vancouver city council will consider rezoning 4,294 parcels of land in central parts of the city to allow larger buildings, including highrises.
1:58
New realtor trends emerging as housing market cools
National picture
While the country is building more houses than it did last year, experts still worry it is not nearly enough.
Story continues below advertisement
'It's hard to get excited about June's housing starts. They were up 14 per cent year-over-year, which sounds impressive, but it adds up to about 2,700 units. That's not the kind of growth the country can really celebrate at this point,' said Clay Jarvis, mortgage expert at NerdWallet Canada.
The slight 0.4 per cent increase compared to last month is meager, he continued. 'Any increase builders can notch in the current economic climate is somewhat of a win, but it's not moving the needle.'
Jarvis added that U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war is also going to add more pressure on developers counting costs.
'It's hard to see starts taking a leap while the trade war with the U.S. drags on,' he said. 'Developers were already facing high building costs before Trump's tariffs were announced, and now they don't know how much it'll cost to complete their projects. That's a lot of risk to take on when there are millions of dollars at stake,' Jarvis said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Automakers are going big on in-car subscriptions. Are customers buying it?
Consumers don't want to pay for it. Automakers are still pushing hard. In-car subscriptions have become a growing obsession for many automakers which see strong revenue potential from recurring customer payments. But it appears that initial attempts to paywall built-in hardware and software features, such as cameras, sensors or navigation perks, haven't been too successful, with few drivers willing to take on yet another monthly bill. That has brought automakers to their next challenge: convincing customers to subscribe. An S&P Global Mobility survey this month found the number of respondents who were willing to pay for connected services in their vehicle dropped to 68 per cent this year, compared with 86 per cent in 2024. 'Subscription-based services (navigation, Wi-Fi, etc.) are increasingly being met with resistance from price-sensitive consumers who may not see the value in paying recurring fees for features they do not frequently use,' the report said. Drivers now have a range of options to subscribe to: semi-autonomous driving, roadside assistance, in-vehicle apps, stolen vehicle assistance and access to Wi-Fi — all at different price tiers. However, steep subscription costs on top of sticker prices of new vehicles remain one of the biggest barriers for many consumers. To get past that, some automakers are offering temporary complementary access to connective services in hopes of gaining loyal customers. Ford Motor Co.'s semi-autonomous driving feature costs between $650 and $900 per year after a 90-day free trial, for example. General Motors Co.'s OnStar subscription can be as high as $39.99 a month after a free trial, according to its website. Automakers which are known for their affordable prices have also joined the race for subscription-based connected services. Kia Corp., for example, has a three-tier subscription offering for owners following a three-year free trial period, which offers services such as a charging station locator, digital key access via smartphone and roadside emergency services. The subscription model is in its evolution phase, said Stephanie Brinley, associate director of autointelligence at S&P Global Mobility. 'We're trying to figure out what consumers are willing to pay for, how much they're willing to, (and) how they want it bundled,' she said. Despite the initial resistance, automakers haven't given up yet. Instead, they're rolling out brand new technology and features in the hopes of enticing drivers to pay for subscriptions. 'They're pivoting to that new tech,' said Daniel Ross, senior manager of industry insights with Canadian Black Book. 'It's more on what's new and what they've never had before.' Ross said as newer technology comes out, there will be more opportunities for automakers to release new generations of cars with updated software. And that's one of the pitches for customers to subscribe, he added. 'If you want that type of technology that's advanced, that's the newest age, that's something you can tell your friends about, this is the way you pay for it,' Ross said. Brinley said automakers are building a road map to help scale this in-car technology and these features to make it more affordable for consumers in the long run — all while keeping personalization at its core. 'Once you have the platform and the service developed, the margin is really high,' Brinley said. 'The fact that it's connected is not really the element that consumers get excited about,' she said. 'It's what does that connectivity do for you as an owner?' Some customers may find value in GM's OnStar safety and security package that alerts for help during a crash, while others may subscribe to Ford's self-driving feature for a month-long road trip. 'The appeal of a feature is that it makes driving easier,' she said. Brinley said automakers have started to talk about their revenue expectations from subscription-based services more concretely. That 'means they're making progress,' she said. On recent earnings calls, GM projected revenue from its hands-free feature, Super Cruise, will be more than $200 million in 2025 and is expected to more than double in 2026. Meanwhile, Ford said the number of its vehicles equipped with the hands-free driving feature, BlueCruise, have more than doubled in the last year to just under 700,000 units. 'You can see our relationship with our customers no longer ends the point of sale or financing. We're starting to build lasting relationships and creating new avenues for reoccurring growth at Ford,' CEO Jim Farley told analysts during its fourth-quarter earnings call. Ross said automakers are banking on the trickle-down effect of the connected services subscription. Often, features first introduced to high-end customers gradually filter their way down to mainstream customers, who are looking for affordable and budget-conscious options, he explained. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. Brinley said the subscription model is still in its early stages. As it progresses, so will consumer expectations. 'If you have a car that has some of these features and then you go to buy the next car, you think that it just should be there,' Brinley said. As consumers get more used to connectivity, their expectation of what comes with a vehicle and what they're going to pay will also evolve, she said. 'There's probably going to be a lot of flexibility over time in how people choose to consume that,' Brinley said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 25, 2025.
Cision Canada
an hour ago
- Cision Canada
CANACCORD GENUITY GROUP INC. ACCESS TO FIRST QUARTER FISCAL 2026 FINANCIAL RESULTS INFORMATION
TORONTO, July 25, 2025 /CNW/ - Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. (TSX: CF) is scheduled to release its first quarter fiscal 2026 financial results and supplementary financial information after Canadian markets close on Wednesday, August 6, 2025. Interested investors and other stakeholders can access the earnings release and supplementary financial information at QUARTERLY CONFERENCE CALL AND WEBCAST: Interested parties are invited to listen to Canaccord Genuity's first quarter fiscal 2026 results conference call via live webcast or a toll-free number. The conference call is scheduled for Thursday, August 7, 2025, at 8:00 a.m. Eastern time, 1:00 p.m. UK, and 10:00 p.m. Australia AEST. The conference call may be accessed live and will also be archived on a listen-only basis at: Analysts and institutional investors can call in via telephone at: 1-416-945-7677 (within Toronto) 1-888-699-1199 (toll free in North America) 448-002-797-040 (toll free from the United Kingdom) 612-801-71385 (within Australia) Please ask to participate in the Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. Q1/26 results call. If a conference call ID is requested, please use 49869. A replay of the conference call will be made available from approximately two hours after the live call on August 7, 2025, until September 7, 2025, at 1-289-819-1450 or 1-888-660-6345 by entering passcode 49869 followed by the (#) key. ABOUT CANACCORD GENUITY GROUP INC.: Through its principal subsidiaries, Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. (the "Company") is a leading independent, full-service financial services firm, with operations in two principal segments of the securities industry: wealth management and capital markets. Since its establishment in 1950, the Company has been driven by an unwavering commitment to building lasting client relationships. We achieve this by generating value for our individual, institutional and corporate clients through comprehensive investment solutions, brokerage services and investment banking services. The Company has wealth management offices located in Canada, the UK, Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man. and Australia. The Company's international capital markets division operates in North America, UK & Europe, Asia, and Australia. Canaccord Genuity Group Inc. is publicly traded under the symbol CF on the TSX. SOURCE Canaccord Genuity Group Inc.
Calgary Herald
2 hours ago
- Calgary Herald
Canadian passport ranked more powerful than the U.S.
Article content 'Countries at the top of the ranking however must work to maintain it, or they will be overtaken. Looking back slightly further, the U.S. was number one on the ranking in 2014, but by only gaining net access to 8 destinations since then, the U.S. has fallen by 9 spots as other top ranking countries outpaced them,' said Souad Ouared, associate director, private clients at Henley & Partners Canada, in an emailed statement to National Post on Friday. Article content 'Japan on the other hand has added 19 destinations to its score since 2014 and gained one spot in the ranking from 3rd to 2nd. Canada sits in the middle of these two. It was ranked 2nd in 2014 and has lost 6 places since then, with a net access gain of 11 destinations.' Article content The ranking shows travellers the relative strength of the passport they hold and the global access it gives them, explained Ouared. Article content Article content 'There are many factors that affect a passport's ranking, including countries updating their visa systems, or diplomatic relations including bi-lateral visa free agreements. It is unusual for a passport's ranking to change significantly from year to year, but rather will see a trend of incremental gains and losses over time,' she said. Article content One of the recent changes that has affected Canada's ranking is the country being excluded from China's list of countries that can visit without a visa. Canadians still require a visa to visit China for tourism, business, study or work. Article content Another recent change? 'The Canadian passport lost access to Brazil, with Brazil citing a lack of reciprocity as the reason,' said Ouared. Article content 'That being said, the Canadian passport remains one of the most powerful in the world, and it is a privilege for all who hold it, considering the broad global access it provides to key destinations.' Article content Roughly 70 per cent of Canadians hold valid passports and more than 24.6 million passports are in circulation, according to data from the federal government updated in 2022.
