📉➡️🏡 The Shift Buyers Have Been Waiting For

For months now, most housing headlines have focused on frustration: affordability pressures, delays in construction, and growing concerns about whether the next generation will be able to buy a home in the GTA.

But if you look a little closer at the data and the direction things are starting to move a very different story begins to emerge.

One that points to real opportunity for buyers who are paying attention.

Affordability Concerns Are Forcing Real Change

Recent polling commissioned by Toronto Regional Real Estate Board across Vaughan, Mississauga, Brampton, Durham Region, and Simcoe County shows what many residents already feel: housing affordability has become a top-of-mind issue everywhere, not just downtown Toronto.

Across the GTA and surrounding regions:

• 88% of residents say they are concerned about housing affordability

• Younger families are increasingly weighing whether they can stay in their communities long-term

• Support is growing for meaningful policy changes that lower the cost of building new homes

This level of concern matters because it’s now translating into action.

Municipalities Are Starting to Respond

In Vaughan, residents strongly backed the city’s decision to cut development charges on new homes by nearly 47% and lock in lower rates through 2029. The public response was clear: people want solutions that actually reduce the cost of housing at the source.

In Mississauga, concern is even more pronounced. Over 90% of residents said affordability is an issue, and nearly half indicated they may leave the city within five years due to housing costs. That kind of pressure puts affordability front and centre for policymakers — and accelerates reform.

Similar frustration showed up in Brampton, where many residents feel government-driven costs on new housing have gone too far, and in Durham Region and Simcoe County, where residents overwhelmingly agree that governments need to do more — and do it faster.

Slower Construction Is Creating Short-Term Opportunity

There’s no denying that housing starts across the region have lagged in recent years. Builders have been cautious, new condo launches have slowed, and inventory growth hasn’t kept pace with population growth.

But here’s the key shift:
prices have adjusted before supply has.

The province’s goal of building 1.5 million homes by 2031 remains ambitious, and current construction levels are still below where they need to be. That gap matters — because it reinforces a simple reality:

Demand isn’t disappearing. It’s being delayed.

Population growth, immigration, and household formation continue, while housing supply struggles to keep up. Over time, that imbalance supports values — especially for buyers who get in during periods of uncertainty rather than peak optimism.

Why This Moment Matters for Buyers

Markets don’t reward waiting for perfect conditions — they reward decisive, informed action.

Right now, we’re seeing:

• Policy pressure pushing governments to reduce costs and speed approvals

• Softer pricing compared to recent peaks

• Less competition than we’ve seen in years

• A clear long-term supply shortage that hasn’t gone away

For buyers who plan properly, structure their financing wisely, and focus on the right opportunities, this environment offers something rare: upside without the frenzy.

The Bottom Line

The conversation around housing is shifting — from frustration to reform, from stagnation to momentum. And historically, those transition periods are where the best opportunities live.

There may not be a “perfect” time to buy — but there are moments when the balance quietly tilts in your favour.

This is one of them.

If you’re thinking about buying, selling, or simply want to understand how today’s market could work for you, having the right strategy matters more than ever.

Subodh Sharma
Skill Realty

📞 416-675-6300