Focusing on the lack of affordable housing.
Overall good points by the two guys although the 10 min video isnt just about housing costs.
But getting to housing, it's actually very simple why housing costs in a lot areas costs a lot. Supply and demand. And that comes from simply too many people. Of course prices go up when there's locals and immigrants all are fighting for rental units and for ones with more cash outright buying a home right off the bat. If gov let's in hoards of people and all the home builders arent putting up units at light speed, there will be excess demand.
Also, what is the fastest way to put up units? Condos. Guess what? Not everyone likes condos. Families may want to aim for a house. Since detached homes in a city might be gimped in construction that makes it even harder as everyone is fighting for them. Notice how all those bidding war stories you hear with 25 offers tossing in submissions almost are all townhouses and detached homes? Of course. There's hardly any. How often have you heard a cookie cutter condo has 25 bids? Probably never. Why? There's probably a shit load of tower units nearby.
Also, the price of new builds is high right off the bat because pending the city you live in, the permit fees might be $50,000 - $100,000 right from square one. That's why you dont get new condos at $200,000 anymore. Where does all those hoards of development permit fees go? Who the hell knows. But gov scoops it up and makes a ton of fees based on a condo tower footprint. That's why a lot of cities love condos. It's easy to build a 40 floor tower and they rake in the fees. And like in the video, they probably dole it all back in services and whatever, somehow going in debt even more, and its a vicious cycle. That;s why as the young guy says at the end about controlling spending, gov needs to too, but most dont and go ape shit contributing to higher costs and endless debt.
Cities often have policies restricting development too. I'm sure just about every builder will build whatever is available. But if the city says you cant build here or there, but you can build here. And it has to be a condo tower that is 40 floors high. Or maybe the city is a hard ass and doesn't want much development at all. So it's a free for all of fighting for homes. Toronto has some kind of protected environment perimeter thing. There's shit loads of space to build more stuff off the map north of the city. Nope. Cant build there. It ruins the greenery. Which are the kinds of homes that need a lot of space and residential streets? Detached houses and townhouse developments.
It's actually amazing. I remember people posting in similar home threads of Gaf. Some of us post we live in modest homes costing over a million. And then some guys post a pic of their sweet house on a giant lot in Texas or Florida that costs half as much. Well, something must be going great when it comes to city fees and equilibrium of supply/demand because that house would probably be $1.5M where I live with a bidding war on open house weekends. Yet, it's a fraction of the price there and everyone is chill.
Toronto could be raising the cost of building and buying new homes by introducing a 49% increase to Development Charges.
www.gta-homes.com