Feds Introduce Housing Policy to Accelerate Homebuilding, and Underbidding Hits Year High in the GTA

This week’s top real estate stories.

By  Jared Lindzon | 2 minute read

Every Friday, Wahi brings you the most important real estate stories from the past week.

Feds Introduce Housing Policy Retro Reboot  

Like the return of vinyl records, polaroid cameras, and persistent inflation, the Canadian government is throwing its housing policy back to simpler times. Earlier this week the Feds announced a relaunch of its Post-WWII housing design catalogue for the New Year, giving builders a menu of pre-vetted blueprints to choose from, allowing them to fast-track the approval process. The reboot, however, comes with a modern twist. While the program focused on single detached homes in the ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s, the modern catalogue will focus on low-rise multi-unit residences at first, before expanding into even higher density designs.

Housing Prices Are Coming Down But Rents Keep Rising  

Housing prices are facing a comedown across the country, but the price hike party rages on in the rental market. According to Rentals.ca’s latest report, prices dipped by 0.2% last month compared to October, but remain 8.2% higher than last November, and more than 20% higher than November 2021. The increases were sharpest in Alberta, which saw a 16.1% hike this year, followed by Quebec with 11% and Nova Scotia with 10%. In the country’s most expensive markets, however, prices are starting to moderate, with Vancouver only seeing a 0.7% rent increase. Toronto rents, meanwhile,have fallen 2.4% since November 2022.

NBA Star Wins Lawsuit Over Crypto King’s Burlington Mansion

Did you hear the one about the NBA Star and the Crypto King? It’s not a joke, although Toronto-born Shai Gilgeous-Alexander wishes it were. The Oklahoma City Thunder point guard and recently crowned Canadian athlete of the year found himself in a nightmare scenario after purchasing a $8.45 million mansion from self-crowned “Crypto King” Aiden Pleterski. Turns out the “King” has made a lot of enemies, one of whom paid the baller a visit days after moving in. This week a judge sided with SGA’s lawsuit, ruling that Pleterski misrepresented the property in marketing it as “private and secure.” 

Low-Ball Offers Welcome in Toronto  

Just a few years ago sellers wouldn’t take a second glance at bids too close to ask, let alone below, and boy have the tables turned. According to our latest data here at Wahi, what once seemed impossible has become the norm, as underbidding remains strong in the GTA, hitting a one-year high last month. In fact, just about every neighbourhood is in what we term “underbidding territory,” with some seeing average offers six-figures below asking. The data is echoed by RBC, which similarly concludes Toronto has entered “correction mode,” with prices falling by a total of 4.8%, or about $56,000, since August. 

Ontario Town Entices GTA Buyers with $10 Properties  

After years of inflation, $10 can’t buy you much these days. In exchange for your Viola Desmond note you can get a small beer at a sporting event, a downtown parking spot for half an hour, or a property in Cochrane, Ontario. That’s right, the town of about 5,000, which sits halfway between Toronto and Manitoba, is selling chunks of land for $10 to attract new residents. The town’s mayor has been making the pitch to Torontonians in an attempt to attract residents who aren’t ready to give up on the dream of homeownership and who don’t mind the 8-hour commute.    

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