Hopeful Canadian homebuyers waiting for housing affordability to make a comeback will continue to have their optimism and stamina tested as the likelihood of closing Canada’s housing gap further deteriorates. To restore affordability to pre-pandemic levels, we need to double the pace of housing starts and reach 430,000 to 480,000 per year, which would completely buck the trend of consistent decline since September 2025.
The numbers are grim, which is why many in the residential construction sector are hedging their bets on the promise of innovative methods. From modular homes produced in factories and assembled on site to cutting-edge 3D printing, several new approaches have emerged to help build safe, affordable, and comfortable homes up to 30- to 50-per-cent faster than traditional construction times. The next step should be as obvious as scaling these approaches, and yet the path forward isn’t that simple.
To build a modular house, a company must apply for a building permit from the municipality, a process requiring them to demonstrate that the project meets the technical requirements of the building code as well as other “applicable laws,” such as a municipal bylaw. If their project does not meet these requirements, the permit is not granted and no shovels go in the ground.
It’s even worse for a builder operating a single facility but aspiring to serve customers nationwide as they are forced to untangle a mess of different provincial, territorial, and municipal code interpretations. While the National Building Code of Canada and compliance standards provide a core trajectory, provinces and territories also enact their own building codes with unique requirements. A modular building unit approved in one province may face different criteria in another, requiring a redesign, re-testing, and additional documentation. Layer municipal bylaws on top of provincial and territorial codes and the modular industry, as well as the wider residential construction industry, ends up navigating a maze of dozens of overlapping and sometimes contradictory regulations.