Affordable Housing: What the Data Shows — and What’s Missing From the Conversation
Across Canada, governments are under increasing pressure to address housing affordability. In response, a growing number of policy proposals focus on increasing housing supply through densification, particularly within existing residential neighbourhoods.
A recent Toronto Star article, “How the government can free up affordable family-sized homes and help young people reach homeownership,” outlines several strategies currently being discussed at the national and municipal levels. The article reflects a broader policy direction being advanced across many Canadian cities, including Edmonton.
You can read the full article here:
👉 https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/how-the-government-can-free-up-affordable-family-sized-homes-and-help-young-people-reach/article_ab81913b-537e-455f-82a8-2a2ab6fc2ce3.html
This blog summarizes what the data and policy record show so far — and highlights important gaps that remain unresolved.
What Governments Are Trying to Do
The Toronto Star article identifies several commonly proposed approaches to improving affordability, including:
Increasing housing supply by allowing more units in existing neighbourhoods
Encouraging smaller units to reduce per-unit costs
Unlocking “missing middle” housing forms such as duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes
Reducing regulatory barriers to speed up development
These approaches are grounded in a widely accepted economic principle: increasing supply can reduce upward pressure on prices, particularly in markets with limited housing availability.
What the Data Shows So Far
While housing supply has increased in many Canadian cities over the past decade, several well-documented trends have emerged:
1. Prices Have Continued to Rise Despite Increased Density
In cities that have aggressively pursued densification, average home prices and rents have continued to increase. According to Statistics Canada and CMHC data, supply growth alone has not resulted in broad-based affordability gains for first-time buyers or families.
2. New Units Are Often Smaller and Higher Priced
A significant portion of newly built housing consists of small-format units (studios and one-bedrooms). While these units may have lower absolute prices than detached homes, their price per square foot is often higher, limiting affordability relative to income.
3. Investor Ownership Is Common in New Builds
Multiple studies across Canadian urban markets show that a notable percentage of new units are purchased by investors rather than owner-occupants. This can reduce the number of homes available for long-term residency and first-time buyers.
4. Family-Sized Housing Remains Limited
Despite policy discussions emphasizing “family-sized homes,” most infill development does not produce multi-bedroom units suitable for families. This continues to push families toward suburban or exurban areas.
Engagement Remains a Key Gap
One of the central challenges identified by residents across Canada — including in Edmonton — is how housing policy changes are implemented.
Historically, Canadian cities emphasized:
Early public engagement
Collaborative planning with residents
Neighbourhood-specific solutions
Recent policy shifts have often prioritized speed and scale, with less emphasis on local context, infrastructure capacity, or resident participation. This has contributed to public concern and declining trust, even among those who support the goal of improving housing affordability.
What Remains Unresolved
The current policy conversation leaves several critical questions unanswered:
How is “affordable” being defined, and for which income levels?
Are new units affordable relative to local wages, not just smaller in size?
How many new homes are owned by residents versus investors?
How are infrastructure, parking, schools, and services being accounted for?
How are existing residents meaningfully involved in shaping outcomes?
These questions are not ideological — they are practical, measurable, and necessary for long-term success.
Moving Forward
Housing affordability is a real challenge, and increasing supply will continue to be part of the solution. However, supply alone has not yet delivered affordability at scale, and broad policy changes that significantly affect existing neighbourhoods require transparent data, clear accountability, and genuine public engagement.
Edmonton has historically been a leader in collaborative city-building. Re-centering residents as partners — rather than obstacles — is essential to achieving housing solutions that are both effective and durable.
Edmonton Neighbourhoods United
Advocating for data-driven housing solutions, meaningful engagement, and neighbourhoods that work for everyone.
