Activity Summary

The Government of Ontario recently announced the first of five Smart Growth Panels to help set and meet the goals of the province's Smart Growth vision. Five panels will be created in total; western, northwestern, northeastern and eastern will join the already announced central region. The Central Region panel will be chaired by Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion and will consist of both municipal and industry representatives including Peter Gilgan, President of Mattamy Homes and Fraser Nelson of Metrus Developments. The remaining Panels will be announced shortly. For more information visit the Smart Growth web site at: www.smartgrowth.gov.on.ca.

BY THE NUMBERS

Total Ontario Housing Starts 2001 - 73,282
Single Detached Starts in 2001 - 36,736
Multiple Unit Starts in 2001 - 33,526
OHBA Housing Start Forecast for 2002 - 73,000
Total Amount of Land Transfer Tax Rebates since 1996 - $136.1 Million
Total Number of Land Transfer Tax Rebates since 1996 - 97,800
Jobs created in Ontario in 2001 - 90,600
Ontarians Employed in Construction in 2001 - 200,000+
Renovation Spending in 2001 - $8.88 Billion
CMHC Renovation Spending Forecast for 2002 - $8.98 Billion
Resale Housing Market Increase 2001 - 7.2%
New Home price Increase 2001 - 5%

MEMBERSHIP MILESTONE PROGRAM

The Ontario Home Builders' Association is pleased to introduce the Membership Milestone Program. With a series of five pins, the OHBA and its local associations acknowledge the on-going loyalty of their members. Each pin symbolizes the milestone of continuous membership in the association and will encourage others to view the value of long-term membership. For more information on this program please contact your local association.

NEW HOME FOR 2003 ONTARIO BUILDING & RENOVATION FORUM

There is a new home for the OHBA Ontario Building & Renovation Forum. The Forum will be held at the Hilton Suites Conference Centre - Markham on January 15th and 16th 2003.

NEW CHAIR OHBA MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE

OHBA President Albert Schepers is pleased to announce that Mr. Bernie Reed, President of the Saugeen Country Home Builders' Association will serve as Chair of the OHBA Membership Committee in 2002. Membership is the lifeblood of our Association and Membership Makes a Difference. If you would like to help Bernie and the Committee please call Dave Henderson at the OHBA office 1-800-387-0109.

ONTARIO/QUEBEC LABOUR RELATIONS

The Ontario Ministry of Labour intends to impose strict regulations against Quebec as a jurisdiction that treats Ontario construction workers unfairly. A recent round of negotiations designed to break down the restrictive barriers to employment in Quebec by Ontario construction companies has failed and as a result, Ontario will level the playing field by implementing tough restrictions on Quebec companies seeking work in Ontario. This has been a long-standing issue for the industry dating back to 1996. Numerous attempts have been made by the Ontario government with little success to date. For more information visit the Ministry of Labour website at: www.gov.on.ca/lab.

RENTAL MARKET UPDATE

Last year only 2716 new rental units were constructed in Ontario and slightly fewer than 4,000 units are forecast for 2002. These figures fall well below the recommended level for a healthy supply. Vacancy rates in 7 out of 10 Metropolitan Areas have vacancy rates below 3% with the tightest being Kitchener (0.6%), Ottawa (0.8%) and Toronto (0.8%). Recently released statistics from CMHC indicate that Ontario is also home to 7 of the 10 highest average rents in Canada. The other three markets are Vancouver, Calgary and Victoria.

Metro Area	1-bdrm '01	1-bdrm '00	%change	2-bdrm '01	2-bdrm '00	%change
Toronto	$866	$830	4.3%	$1,027	$979	4.9%
Ottawa	$762	$723	5.4%	$914	$877	4.2%
Oshawa	$692	$684	1.7%	$799	$778	2.7%
Windsor	$618	$599	3.1%	$738	$736	0.3%
Kitchener	$615	$598	2.8%	$722	$697	3.6%
Hamilton	$608	$582	4.4%	$740	$719	2.9%
St. Catharines	$569	$545	4.4%	$680	$653	4.1%

ENERQUALITY COURSE

Enerquality Corporation is offering a one day Building Technology Workshop for Realtors on Friday April 19, 2002. This course helps realtors understand the technologies builders are using. Other topics being covered include: explaining what makes a house a healthy home to live in, understanding energy efficiency, and recognizing the significance of an HRV or a combo system. This course also provides Realtors with 8 RECO credits. For more information please contact Susan Woolsey at the OHBA office, 416-447-0077.