Real estate industry brings breadth of jobs, revenue to GTA
By DAVE WILKESBILD
Courtesy: www.thestar.com
What do you think about when you notice cranes and construction in our communities? I see a city looking to the future and I think about the jobs, wages and investment that the home building, land development and professional renovation industry will contribute to the GTA’s economy.
Many different types of professionals find high-quality jobs in our industry. Long before construction starts, urban planners, land surveyors, architects and engineers begin the process of developing a new condo or townhouse community. Carpenters, masons, drywallers and electricians carry out the onsite work while graphic designers, marketers and salespeople bring the new home or community to the attention of potential buyers.
This process of bringing new homes to market provided 120,276 jobs in the GTA last year, both onsite and offsite, according to estimates prepared for the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, based on data from Statistics Canada and the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation. That was 3.8 per cent more than the 115,844 jobs new home construction provided in 2016.
The professionals and tradespeople holding these jobs in new home construction earned $7.1 billion in wages last year, which was 4.4 per cent more than the $6.8 billion earned in 2016. In addition to generating billions in tax revenues, these earnings were used to purchase goods like groceries, clothes and cars, supporting growth in other industries and contributing to the economic success of our region.
And the construction of new homes is only one facet of our industry. We also renovate and repair homes, creating a further 150,546 jobs onsite and offsite in the GTA last year — 4.6 per cent more than the 143,969 jobs created in 2016 — and paying almost $9 billion in wages, 5.9 per cent more than the $8.5 billion paid in 2016.
Many renovation professionals in the GTA are members of BILD’s RenoMark program, which connects homeowners with professional renovator general contractors who have agreed to abide by a renovation-specific Code of Conduct. Find them at renomark.ca.
When you choose to work with a RenoMark renovator instead of a cash-only, under-the-table contractor, you are not only protecting yourself, but also keeping tax revenues from being lost to the underground economy.
As our region grows, so does our industry’s contribution. Last year the GTA received an investment of $17 billion from the new home construction industry and $16.1 billion from the renovation and repair industry, for a total investment of $33.1 billion from our industry. That was 8.5 per cent more than the $30.5 billion total investment in 2016.
Clearly, our industry is a powerful economic and employment force in the GTA, essential to our region’s prosperity. And as the municipal elections approach this fall, we’ll be speaking with candidates about ways we can work together to make it easier to build a healthy supply of homes that people can afford, generating great jobs and investment along the way.
Dave Wilkes is President and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD), the voice of the home building, land development and professional renovation industry in the GTA. For the latest industry news and new home data, follow BILD on Twitter, @bildgta, or visit bildgta.ca.
