Flunked: RESCON report gives 22 muncipalities ‘F’ in housing

Key Takeaways:

• Most Greater Golden Horseshoe municipalities received failing grades on housing performance, with Toronto especially hard hit as starts fell 58% and sales dropped 91% in early 2025.
• The slowdown has caused significant economic strain, resulting in over 24,000 fewer person-years of employment across the region, including more than 10,000 job losses in Toronto.
• Industry leaders warn Ontario is facing the worst housing crisis in a generation and are calling on all levels of government to cut taxes and modernize approval processes to revive construction.

The Whole Story:

Most municipalities in the Greater Golden Horseshoe, including Toronto, have received failing marks in a new report on housing performance, highlighting steep declines in construction activity and sales across the region.

The study, conducted by the University of Ottawa’s Missing Middle Initiative for the Residential Construction Council of Ontario (RESCON), graded 34 municipalities on housing starts and sales. Of those, 22 received an F, five were graded D, and seven earned a C or higher. Brantford received an A-plus and Milton an A.

“The findings of this report are troubling and should set off the alarm bells for policymakers across all three levels of government,” said RESCON president Richard Lyall. “Housing projects have been shelved and the industry has hit a wall. The outlook is bleak, and we are trending in the wrong direction. We need governments to take concrete action to lower the tax burden and modernize the process to kick-start the industry. Our economy will be in dire straits if we do not act quickly.”

The report draws on data from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and Altus Group, examining housing starts, sales, and employment over the first six months of 2025 compared with averages from 2021 to 2024. Across the 34 municipalities, housing starts dropped an average of 40 per cent, while condo starts fell 54 per cent and purpose-built rental starts rose slightly, by eight per cent. Non-apartment starts fell 42 per cent.

Toronto was hit particularly hard, with starts down 58 per cent and sales falling 91 per cent over the same period. The decline in activity is estimated to have cost the city more than 10,000 jobs.

“Both the federal and provincial governments have committed to doubling housing starts,” said Mike Moffatt, an economist and founder of the Missing Middle Initiative. “Unfortunately, housing starts are falling, and new home sales show that further declines in starts are about to come. All three orders of government must act to address the housing crisis.”

Pre-construction sales, often seen as a key market indicator, also plummeted. Condo pre-construction sales dropped 89 per cent, while ground-oriented sales fell 70 per cent, signaling that Ontario’s housing challenges will likely worsen in the near term.

The report also notes the broader economic impact, estimating 24,195 fewer person-years of employment in the region due to reduced housing starts.

“We are in the midst of the worst housing crisis in a generation,” Lyall said. “While the situation is bad it could get worse if governments fail to reduce the tax burden on new housing.”