Premier Wynne meets with Ontario REALTORS

The Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) and the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) met with Premier Kathleen Wynne today to discuss housing affordability and other real estate issues affecting Ontarians. Realtors are encouraged by Premier Wynne’s commitment to helping more young Ontarians become home owners.

“We discussed a range of solutions to help with home affordability,” said Ray Ferris, president of OREA. “We recommended the need for bringing more supply of homes to the market. The demand for homes is outpacing supply, and that’s making affordable home ownership difficult for thousands of young families.”

The province can bring more supply to the market by reducing permit approval times, auditing official plans and dedicating more infrastructure funding to get land serviced. Responsibly easing restrictions on developable land will open the door for greater housing development and more choice for home buyers.

In an effort to help first-time home buyers, last week the Ontario government announced its plans to increase the Land Transfer Tax rebate. As of January 1, 2017, the rebate for first-time home buyers will increase from $2,000 to $4,000.

“The LTT rebate increase is an important first step towards more affordable home ownership,” said Tim Hudak, OREA CEO-Designate. “We were pleased to see Ontario resist scapegoating foreign home buyers for affordability challenges in the market. We commend the Premier for taking a data driven approach to housing policy decisions.”

Moving forward, Realtors are committed to working with Premier Wynne and her government to make home ownership more affordable for Ontario families.

About OREA Representing the 67,800 real estate brokers and salespeople members of Ontario’s 40 real estate boards, the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) serves its members through advocacy, educational programs and special services. www.orea.com.