An Ontario city smashed its new housing targets by 250%. But are prices going down?
globalnews.caOn paper, Kingston, Ont., is doing everything the provincial government has asked it to do on housing — and more.The city was told to get building work underway on 587 new homes in 2023 as part of the province’s push to build 1.5 million new homes. By the end of the year, Kingston had achieved 250 per cent of its target, with 1,465 housing starts.The benchmark price for a home in Kingston in February 2024 was $543,800, down 0.3 per cent from the same time last year.
Nationally, the Canadian Real Estate Association had the average price at $685,809, up 3.5 per cent year over year.So, is the provincial government’s plan to build 1.5 million homes working? Are stable prices year over year in Kingston a sign that the Ford government’s housing plan will work, or are other factors at play?Ahead of the 2022 election, the Progressive Conservatives embraced a new promise on the housing file. They pledged to boost the number of new homes in Ontario by 1.5 million in the decade leading up to 2031.Ontario Premier Doug Ford promised his government would do everything in its power to reduce red tape and allow for more homes to be built.
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