As housing affordability continues to dominate national discourse, a new research report from the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University, supported by the Equiton Research Fund in Real Estate, identifies how policymakers can take immediate, cost-effective steps to significantly boost housing supply in Canada.

The study, Breaking Ground: AI-Driven Analysis of How Policy Reform Can Unleash Canadian Housing Supply, uses artificial intelligence to model the impact of regulatory decisions, construction costs, and approval delays on housing completions and price trends across major Canadian cities.

The report confirms what many in the industry have long asserted: reducing policy barriers and construction costs is essential for aligning housing supply with growing demand. According to Christopher Wein, COO of Equiton Developments, “This study quantifies the real-world impact of regulatory hurdles, providing the data policymakers need to act decisively.”

Lead researcher Dr. Erkan Yönder, Associate Professor of Real Estate and Finance, emphasizes that, while the housing crisis is complex, early wins are within reach. “Streamlining approval frameworks and cutting red tape offer immediate, low-cost steps with high-impact potential. The cost of inaction is simply too great.”

• A 10% reduction in building restrictions can boost housing completions by nearly the same percentage.
• A 10% cut in approval delays adds an additional 3% to completions annually.
• Conversely, a 10% rise in input costs—including materials, labour, fees, and taxes—can slash completions by 25% to 35%, particularly for multi-unit housing.
• In Toronto, home prices could reach $1.8 million by 2032 without intervention. Doubling completions could moderate that to $1.6 million.
• In Vancouver, prices could exceed $2.8 million by 2032 unless aggressive supply increases bring that closer to $2.5 million.
• Montréal and Calgary also show significant sensitivity to supply and population changes, with varying impacts on price growth.

The findings complement earlier AI-driven research by Yönder’s team that projected long-term rental trends across Canada’s largest cities. Together, the studies reinforce the powerful role that timely, data-backed policy reform can play in addressing Canada’s growing housing needs.

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