Toronto smashes housing construction targets by 51%

Key Takeaways:

• Toronto is one of several cities Ontario is awarding funding this month.
• Brampton, Brantford and Chatham-Kent also received millions for their progress on housing goals.
• The money stems from the province’s Building Faster Fund, a three-year, $1.2 billion program that is designed to encourage municipalities to address the housing supply crisis.

The Whole Story:

It pays to crush your housing goals. 

Premier Doug Ford announced Ontario is providing Toronto with $114 million in funding through the Building Faster Fund after the city exceeded its 2023 housing target. Toronto broke ground on a total of 31,656 new housing units last year, unlocking an additional $38 million by exceeding their 2023 target by 51%.

“Toronto has shown it can get it done on housing and we are proud to reward them for their success,” said Premier Doug Ford. “My challenge to Mayor Chow and to every mayor in Ontario is to get even more homes built in the coming years so we can make life more affordable and keep the dream of homeownership alive for families across the province. We’ll be there to support you every step of the way.”

Announced in August 2023, the Building Faster Fund is a three-year, $1.2 billion program that is designed to encourage municipalities to address the housing supply crisis. The fund rewards municipalities that make significant progress against their targets by providing funding for housing-enabling and community-enabling infrastructure. Funding is provided to municipalities that have reached at least 80 per cent of their provincially assigned housing target for the year with increased funding for municipalities that exceed their target.

“It’s harder than ever for people in Toronto to find a home they can afford,” said Mayor Olivia Chow. “We are committed to addressing the housing crisis by building more homes of all kinds, faster. Toronto has an ambitious plan to speed up approval times and build 65,000 rental homes in the coming years. The Building Faster Fund will help us meet and exceed our housing targets and provide the critical infrastructure that creates great neighbourhoods for people to live in.”

In the coming weeks, the province will announce Building Faster Fund rewards for all municipalities that met, exceeded or achieved 80% of their assigned housing targets in 2023. Any unspent funding will be made available for housing-enabling infrastructure to all municipalities, including those that have already received funding as a result of reaching their targets, through an application process. In addition, ten per cent – or $120 million – of the Building Faster Fund is being set aside for small, rural and northern municipalities to help build housing-enabling infrastructure and prioritize projects that speed up the increase of housing supply.

“I applaud the work being done by Toronto and all the other municipalities that have met or exceeded their housing targets,” said Paul Calandra, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. “Our government is committed to building at least 1.5 million homes by 2031 and I look forward to unveiling the next steps in our plan to build more homes with the release of our fifth housing supply action plan next month.”

Other cities that have received funds include:

• $25.5 million for Brampton for substantial progress towards meeting its 2023 housing target. Brampton broke ground on a total of 7,028 new housing units last year.
• $440,000 for Chatham-Kent after the municipality exceeded its 2023 housing target. Chatham-Kent broke ground on a total of 522 new housing units last year, unlocking an additional $146,667 by exceeding their 2023 target.
• $3 million for Brantford for exceeding its 2023 housing target. Brantford broke ground on a total of 788 new housing units last year, unlocking an additional $400,182 by exceeding their 2023 target by 8%.