In Canada’s housing crisis, are modular homes a cheaper and faster solution?

Canada is facing a serious housing crisis, with too few homes being built and prices climbing too fast. According to CTV News, one idea gaining attention is modular homes. These are built in a factory, then moved to the site and assembled. The goal is to build more homes quickly and at lower cost.

Factory-built homes have several advantages. First, construction can happen faster. While traditional homes are built fully on-site, modular units can be made indoors out of the weather and stacked or joined together once delivered. This speeds up the process and cuts time wasted on bad weather or slow inspections. This is important in Canada, where severe winters often delay building.

Another key benefit is cost. Modular building can be cheaper than traditional methods because factory production helps cut labour costs and reduce waste. Since each home is built using the same parts and steps, skilled workers improve efficiency. Builders say this repeatable process also means fewer materials get thrown away. With rising prices on materials and labour, any way to trim costs is vital.

But modular homes face challenges too. Factories must invest a lot up front to get set up. There may also be limits on how big the modules can be, because they have to fit on trucks and through roads. In some cases, transporting large units to remote or urban sites can be expensive and tricky.

Still, many experts believe modular homes could play a helpful role in solving Canada's housing shortage. They aren’t the whole answer, but they could be part of a mixed strategy that also includes new zoning rules, faster permits, and support for traditional building. Especially for building homes in large numbers, like apartment blocks or row houses, modular design makes sense.

In the end, Canada's housing crisis needs new thinking and faster results. Modular homes offer a promising path: building houses faster, cutting costs, and easing pressure on the housing market. With smart planning and investment, they could become one of the key tools Canada uses to meet its need for more affordable and available homes.