Ontario Building Information employees author
The Higher Ottawa Dwelling Builders’ Affiliation (GOHBA) is warning that rising Growth Charges (DCs) are considerably impacting the affordability of recent properties in Ottawa. This assertion follows the Metropolis of Ottawa’s Planning and Housing Committee’s latest approval so as to add company research to DC charges, marking the third enhance since Might 2024.
In accordance with GOHBA, the most recent enhance will add between $350 and $650 to the price of most new properties in Ottawa.
“While this number may seem small, when you include the new DC By-law from May, it’s the fourth increase in development changes we’ve seen this year,” GOHBA govt director Jason Burggraaf mentioned in an announcement final Wednesday (Nov. 20).
The affiliation argues that the true extent of the DC will increase is obscured by periodic modifications. Knowledge exhibits that from Oct. 1, 2023, to Nov. 27, 2024, DC charges for brand spanking new properties have risen by a median of 28% contained in the greenbelt, 23% outdoors the greenbelt, 26% in serviced rural areas, and 29% in unserviced rural areas.
Backgrounder: Rising Growth Charges in Ottawa
To fight these rising prices, GOHBA has submitted suggestions to the provincial authorities urging them to strengthen the Growth Charges Act.
“If it is happening in Ottawa, it is certainly happening in municipalities across the province, adding unnecessary cost to new home construction,” mentioned Burggraaf. “Ensuring fair, transparent, and justified development charges is essential to meeting our shared housing goals.”
GOHBA has recognized a number of points with the present DC practices, together with the dearth of transparency in municipal DC reporting, using cash-in-lieu to fund benefit-to-existing initiatives, and the borrowing of DC revenues for different capital initiatives.
The affiliation advocates for insurance policies that steadiness the necessity for infrastructure funding with the aim of accelerating housing provide and affordability.
