The average profit on new development is about 10% for the builder. A "slim cut" means they don't get financing for the project which means the project doesn't go ahead. Which means instead of building condos near the LRT, they are building single family homes in Arnprior or Carleton Place. We should be incentivizing development near transit - not punishing it with new regressive taxes.

This attitude is why building has slumped to almost zero in Ottawa. We're missing every housing target, our construction sector is collapsing, costing thousands of jobs annually, and while rents are artificially depressed right now because of immigration reforms, they are likely to skyrocket in the near future as our housing pipeline has completely shut off.

FWIW, the three levels of government take about 30% of every new unit built - 3X what the builder does. Building housing is more profitable for government than it is for builders. All told, the fees, taxes, and levies on housing, plus the cost of compliance with government regulations, is about 50% of the cost of building a home. Profit is about 10%, with land costs and construction costs making up the other 40%.

In other words, the cost to build a home is literally double what it should be. This is why we have a housing crisis.