On Wednesday, Mississauga City Council approved a motion from Mayor Carolyn Parrish to make housing more affordable by temporarily lowering development charges and reducing property taxes for new purpose-built rental housing.
The incentives closely follow the release of a report from the Mayor's Housing Task Force, a group of 30 experts from Ontario's private and not-for-profit building and development industry that Parrish formed soon after her election in June 2024 to address Mississauga's housing crisis.
Currently, the average home price in Mississauga sits around $1.4 million for a detached home or $600,000 for a condo. Meanwhile, average rent is $2,500 for a one bedroom and $3,000 for a two bedroom.
In aim of reducing costs for end users, the City has now reduced residential development charges by 50% and by 100% for three-bedroom units in purpose built rental apartments for projects that pull building permits before November 13, 2026. As well, the City will defer the collection of residential development charges for all residential developments and collect them at occupancy instead.
Before the incentives were enacted, development charges amounted to 10% of the final cost of a home in Mississauga, with 25% of a GTA home price stemming from fees, taxes, and charges from all levels of government. In Mississauga, development charges for residential apartments have now plummeted from $38,316 per unit to $19,158 per unit. As a part of the motion, Parrish is also requesting the Region of Peel to match the development charge incentives.
Also adopted by Council was a motion to implement a new multi-residential tax subclass, reducing property taxes by up to 35% for new purpose-built rental housing in order to incentivize new rental development.
"In a crisis of this magnitude, we must act now. Reducing development charges – and eliminating them for family units in rental developments – will help get shovels in the ground immediately," says Parrish in a press release. "As Mayor, I can confidently say that our Council and staff are doing everything we can, within our power, to get housing built. However, to tackle this housing crisis, collective action is crucial. I’m calling other levels of government to come to the table."
To pay for the changes to the DC by-law, Parrish is directing city staff to seek government funding from the Building Faster Fund, the federal Housing Accelerator Fund, and the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund.
The progressive changes come as positive news to builders and developers who have been calling for reduced development charges across the GTA and Ontario for some time now.
“The City of Mississauga is walking the walk when it comes to new housing,” says David Wilkes, President and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) in a press release. “BILD and its members echo the City’s call to the Region of Peel to consider matching the actions of the City. We would also like to acknowledge and thank the Federal Government for its direct financial support of Mississauga’s efforts. We encourage all regions, cities, and towns in the GTA to follow the vision and lead of Mississauga.”
Mississauga is now the third GTA municipality to reduce development charges in the last year, following the City of Vaughan in November and the City of Burlington in May.
