Ontario’s Political Parties’ Strategies for Addressing the Housing Crisis

As Ontarians get ready to vote in the 2025 provincial election, the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) has published its Election Report Card, assessing the housing platforms of the four major political parties.

The report evaluates each party’s platform against OREA’s housing plan, which provides actionable solutions to tackle the province’s housing supply and affordability challenges.

A home for everyone

OREA’s A Home for Everyone focuses on three key priorities:

1. Increasing housing supply

   • Ending exclusionary zoning to allow up to four units per lot across Ontario
   • Increasing density near transit corridors through zoning modernization and commercial-to-residential conversions
   • Promoting modular housing as a scalable solution to add supply faster

2. Lowering the cost of homeownership

   • Reducing or capping municipal development charges
   • Creating a framework to allow multiplex properties to be easily severed or sold as condos
   • Providing incentives to first-time buyers and introducing pathways for innovative ownership models

3. Improving consumer protections

   • Strengthening the Landlord and Tenant Board by addressing backlogs and restoring in-person hearings
   • Eliminating the auctioneer exemption to create a single standard of professional oversight in real estate transactions
   • Enhancing professional education standards for Realtors to better serve consumers

OREA’s report card

OREA presented the results of a survey sent to each party based on its platform and received completed surveys from the NDP and Ontario Liberals, as well as a written submission from the PCs. OREA conducted its analysis based on completed survey questions, information provided, and details from housing platforms available online.

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC)

The PC’s proposal to encourage modular housing by creating housing innovation guides to help consumers navigate building processes and financing options will help bring more housing supply to the market. This proposal aligns with OREA’s recommendation to promote and help scale innovative approaches to housing development.

Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP)

The NDP’s proposals will double the supply of affordable homes, legalize fourplexes, and increase density around transit. They also support eliminating the auctioneer exemption, restoring in-person hearings at the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB), and establishing a framework to enable innovative co-ownership options for multiplexes.

Ontario Liberal Party

The Ontario Liberal Party proposes to end development charges on new housing units under 3,000 square feet and to eliminate the provincial land transfer tax for first-time homebuyers, seniors downsizing, and non-profit homebuilders, aligning with OREA’s recommendation to lower the cost of homeownership.

Green Party of Ontario

The Green Party of Ontario is committing to building two million new homes in the next decade by legalizing fourplexes as-of-right across Ontario. This aligns with OREA’s call to end exclusionary zoning by allowing up to four units per single-family lot, as-of-right province-wide.

OREA President Rick Kedzior says in a press release, “Whether they are voting PC, NDP, Liberal, or Green, Ontarians want leaders who are willing to help people achieve the dream of homeownership, obtain more affordable housing, and break down barriers that prevent them from finding a great place to call home.”

Ontario heads to the polls on Feb. 27.