NEWS RELEASE



Cost of Housing and Lack of Infrastructure are as Important as Crime as the Top Three Municipal Election Issues in the GTA a Home Building Industry and REALTORS®  Joint IPSOS Poll Finds

TORONTO, September 12, 2018 -- The Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) and the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) have come together to shed light on voters' priorities in the upcoming municipal elections. Together, BILD and TREB represent all facets of the real estate industry.

"Residents of the GTA are concerned about housing affordability and availability," said Dave Wilkes, President and CEO, BILD GTA. "People are concerned about where young families and first-time home buyers will live, or if they will be able to afford to live in the GTA at all."

Some of the key results from the poll are as follows:

It is estimated that 115,000 new residents call the GTA home every year. By 2041 the population of the GTA is expected to swell to 9.7 million putting increased pressure on the housing supply in the region. Only 33 per cent of respondents feel that the GTA is prepared to provide housing for this influx of people over the next 23 years, while the balance feel that the GTA is ill prepared. Furthermore, 67 per cent of those polled feel that their children will be unable to afford a home in the community they grew up in.

"If we want to build more houses, faster, to increase affordability and availability, we should look at what can be done at the municipal level. It is important that housing affordability is part of every municipal candidate's platform.  Voters and candidates can learn more about this at  www.buildforgrowth.com," said Wilkes.

"One of the key issues facing home buyers and renters in the GTA is inadequate housing supply and choice, and one of the main reasons for this is municipal policy that unnecessarily locks up housing options.  We are encouraging home buyers and renters to let municipal election candidates know their views through TREB's new election campaign web site: UnLockMyHousingOptions.ca; it is easy as the website does all the work for you," said Garry Bhaura, TREB President.

It is noteworthy that the Home Building Industry and REALTORS® have joined forces on this issue.

"TREB is excited to be working with the BILD to ensure that important housing issues receive the attention that they deserve, from both candidates and voters, during this municipal election campaign.  As the poll shows, housing issues are top of mind for the electorate," said John DiMichele, Chief Executive Officer for TREB.

 

About the GTA Municipal Elections Poll

For this survey, a sample of 1,503 GTA residents from the Ipsos I-Say panel was interviewed from August 20 to 23, 2018. Quotas and weighting were employed to ensure that the sample's composition reflects the overall population according to census information. The precision of online polls is measured using credibility interval. In this case, the results are accurate to within +/- 2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had all Canadian adults been polled. Credibility intervals are wider among subsets of the population.

About the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB)

TREB is Canada's largest real estate board. Over 50,000 residential and commercial TREB Members serve consumers in the Greater Toronto Area.  Greater Toronto REALTORS® are passionate about their work. They are governed by a strict Code of Ethics and share a state-of-the-art Multiple Listing Service®.

About the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD)

With 1,500 members, BILD is the voice of the home building, land development and professional renovation industry in the Greater Toronto Area. BILD is proudly affiliated with the Ontario and Canadian Home Builders' Associations.