Multiplexes, garden suites and other small infill homes make up 10 times more of Toronto’s housing starts compared to two years ago, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC).
uncertain
Multiplexes → make → Corp.
But Toronto is still lagging behind other major Canadian cities.
asserted
Toronto → lag → cities
Small-scale infills, defined as either a development of two to eight units or a secondary suite built within existing neighbourhoods, made up 6.45 per cent of Toronto’s housing starts in 2025, according to a CMHC report released last week, up from 0.62 per cent of starts in 2023.
uncertain
infills → define → 2023
Toronto has been pushing for more infill housing options over the last few years, legalizing multiplexes and backyard suites.
asserted
Toronto → push → multiplexes
Some housing experts suggest these housing types could make up the “missing middle” options in Toronto, appealing to renters and owners who can’t afford a single-family home but don’t want to live in an apartment.
uncertain
who → suggest → apartment
But despite the increase, Toronto’s proportion of small-scale infills falls far short of other Canadian cities like Vancouver and Edmonton.
asserted
proportion → fall → Vancouver
What’s driving the increase?
asserted
What → drive → increase
CMHC links the jump in small-scale infill housing to Toronto’s passing of legislation that paves the way for developers to build these kinds of units.
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developers → link → units
In May 2023, Toronto city council legalized multiplexes of up to four units citywide.
uncertain
council → legalize → units
And last year, city council allowed the construction of fiveplexes and sixplexes without special permissions in preamalgamation Toronto and East York, and in Ward 23 (Scarborough North).
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council → allow → Ward
“Cities have been trying to encourage this form of housing,” said Aled ab Iorwerth, CMHC’s deputy chief economist.
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Iorwerth → try → housing
He added infills are now seen as a little more “socially acceptable” than they were several years ago.
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they → add → ?
Opposition to multiplexes has been fierce in the city’s outer wards, but that’s not the only
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that → ’ → wards
Units in these buildings are more appealing to some renters because they tend to have larger living areas, backyard access and competitive prices versus comparable units in a condo building, said Ricardo Barros, a broker with Re/Max Solutions Barros Group.
asserted
Barros → tend → Group
“You don’t have the same kind of hustle and bustle as you would with a large luxury condo building,” Barros said.
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Barros → have → building
“It’s just more family-oriented.
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It → ’ → ?
Now, many multiplexes are being built in areas with strong rental demand, including Trinity-Bellwoods, Little Italy and near the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, he said.
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he → build → LRT
In other Canadian cities, small-scale infills are making up a greater proportion of housing starts.
asserted
infills → make → starts
In Vancouver, they made up around 18 per cent of starts last year, according to CMHC data, while small infills accounted for nearly a quarter of all housing starts in Edmonton.
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infills → make → Edmonton
Uptake on small-scale infills may partially depend on how favourable local residents and councillors are towards multiplexes, said James McKellar, a professor emeritus at York University’s Schulich School of Business who studies housing.
uncertain
who → depend → housing
“There will be the odd success,” for multiplex developments in Toronto, he said, but “generally, there’s strong community opposition to it.”
asserted
he → say → it
In Vancouver, sixplexes and eightplexes are allowed in low-density neighbourhoods across the city, depending on the size of the lot.
asserted
sixplexes → allow → lot
A recent CMHC study found it was the only big city in Canada on track to reach pre-pandemic
The fact much of Toronto still doesn’t allow fiveplexes and sixplexes would need to change if Toronto wants to see more small-scale infill development, McKellar said, noting the city should also consider that multiplexes may not be the right housing solution for everyone, and more single-family housing is also needed.
uncertain
housing → find → everyone
While CMHC hasn’t analyzed exactly why Toronto is behind other cities, ab Iorwerth said high construction costs and Toronto’s expensive land prices could also be stunting the growth of small-scale infills in the city.
uncertain
costs → analyze → city
He noted those factors have also lowered Toronto’s rate of overall housing starts.
asserted
factors → note → starts
Cheaper land prices in Edmonton could explain why multiplexes are more popular there, Barros said, while the higher cost of renting in Vancouver may mean developers are better able to cover the cost of building infills.
uncertain
developers → explain → infills
“It’s a great concept,” he said.
asserted
he → ’ → ?
But in Toronto, “the math just doesn’t work yet.”
asserted
math → work → Toronto
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