By Staff
October 4th, 2024
BURLINGTON, ON
When numbers tell part of the story – here is what they have to say about housing, industrial and office space.
4,996
—
The number of home sales recorded in the GTA this September, up from August’s numbers by just 21 total transactions.
30,000
—
The decrease in the number of housing starts in Canada in 2023, according to new modelling from CMHC.
8.4%
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The quarter-over-quarter decline in new industrial space construction across Canada, according to a report published by CBRE this week.
Contractors also have limits on how much work they can take on, I would think they are at least net 90 on payment from developers and most likely more, very few will be self-financed with the rest relying on banks and suppliers for credit, both of which are particularly shy about extending that credit to smaller iindependent contractors, who by their very small size are typically cheaper than larger corporations.
The issue is not a shortage of skilled workers or materials. Canadians need to stop buying into that. The number of job vacancies peaked in Apr 2022 and has been on a steady and dramatic decline since Aug 2022. There is no “shortage” of workers when there aren’t jobs for them. Unemployment has been on the rise since April 2023 including in the construction sector.
The reduction in construction is due to high interest rates. Most developers don’t have all the money to build in their pocket and need to finance.
And frankly, Burlington doesn’t need more housing. It has been one of the most developed cities in Ontario over the last 30 years. Just bc Trudeau dangles a carrot does not mean Meed should be taking it. Sadly for taxpayers, her “visions” for Burlington as a world class city are her own and she has no concept of financial restraint.
So, why would a builder/developer not build more homes? Some reasons, shortage of skilled workers or materials. Unable to sell what they have in inventory therefore no financial incentive to build more. Miles and miles of red tape. Cost of building materials rising faster than the sale price of units. That is the meaningful part of the story.