Ajax is committed to building more homes, faster.
For a long time, the price of homes has gone up faster than people’s pay. This makes it hard for families to buy or rent a place to live. To help make homes cost less, governments are working together on one important goal:
Build homes quickly, dependably, and at prices people can afford.
New programs and rewards from the provincial and federal government give towns and cities much needed resources to do their part helping people move into homes they can pay for.
Here are some ways we’re working with our partners to build more homes, faster.
Ajax Housing Action Plan
The Town of Ajax has made a simple plan to help build homes for people and their families.
Ajax’s Housing Plan has three main goals:
Prioritizing safe, affordable, and temporary housing options
Preserving, improving, and expanding rental supply
Facilitating a balanced mix of housing types and tenures (renting/occupying/owning)
The Ajax Housing Action Plan has 30 different steps under these goals to help build new homes and make sure they stay affordable for a long time.
Ajax is a great place for families and people to live. With this plan, the Town is working to make sure everyone can find a home. Even though the Town doesn’t build homes itself, it helps by making rules for how and where new homes can be built, and by approving new projects.
What are Ajax’s Housing Needs?
What kinds of homes do people need now, and in the future?
How much do homes cost?
How many people live in Ajax?
What types of homes are missing – affordable apartments, homes for seniors, or places for big families?
These are the questions our Housing Needs Assessment looks to answer. The Town updates this report every few years to ensure staff have the right information to plan for growth and help people find homes that suit their needs.
With this report, Ajax can use special tools like Inclusionary Zoning (which ensures new-home affordability) or get funding from programs like the Housing Accelerator Fund.
It helps the Town decide:
where to build homes,
how many to build,
which kinds to build,
how much they should cost,
and how to support those looking for a place to live.
The report also looks at what’s already available and where the gaps are. This way, the Town can make sure it’s doing everything it can to help people find safe, affordable places to live.
The Housing Accelerator Fund
In 2023, the Town of Ajax got $22 million from the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF), which is a special program from the Canadian government. This program helps municipalities build homes faster and make it easier for people to find a place to live.
Ajax created a plan to show how they would use the money. The plan includes ideas to speed up building homes, make it easier to get approval to build, and remove things that make it hard to build new houses. Each year, Ajax has to show the government what they have done and how they are reaching their goals.
The money is given to Ajax over four years. During this time, Ajax will:
Make rules simpler so people can build homes more easily
Start new programs, like letting people apply for building permits online
Allow up to four homes on one property anywhere in town
Change rules to make it easier to build near the Ajax GO train station
Find extra public land that might be used for new homes
Give rewards for adding extra homes to properties
Some of the money also helps pay for projects in the community, like making the Ajax Community Centre better and building the new Ajax Fairgrounds. All of these changes will help more people find homes in Ajax and make it a better place to live
| Overall Permitted Unit Targets (3 years) | 3,613 |
|---|---|
| Units expected without HAF (baseline) | 3,029 |
| Units incented by HAF | 584 |
| Ajax's 10-year unit projection | 10,713 |
822
Homes started
Since January 1st, 2023
| Permitted Unit Targets with Breakdown | Total Target | Year 1 Forecast | Year 1 Progress |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing Supply Growth Target | 3,613 | 819 | 570 |
| - Multi-Unit housing units in close proximity to rapid transit | 758 | Note: There are no annual forecasts for different unit types | 0 |
| - Missing middle housing units | 843 | 189 | - Other multi-unit housing units | 842 | 380 | Affordable Housing units | 126 | 0 |
*Source: Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
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The Build More, Get More Grant Program is made possible by the Housing Accelerator Fund. The program allows applicants of new additional dwelling units to receive a grant amount for each unit built.
Examples of ADUs include a basement apartment, garden suite, upstairs apartment, and a living space within an existing garage. Learn more on our Grant Program for ADUs webpage
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Using the Pickering Village arena and library site as a pilot project, the Town is looking at ways to leverage its existing properties to partner with developers to combine housing with community services.
The Town has retained a consultant to develop the background framework and will ultimately release an RFP in 2026 to find a development partner to build more housing in the Pickering Village.
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The Official Plan is a long-term guide for how Ajax will grow and develop, setting rules for how land can be used to make sure the town grows in a smart, balanced and sustainable way.
The Official Plan helps decide where and what types of homes can be built. It supports a mix of housing options to meet the needs of current and future residents, while making sure new development fits well with the community.
Learn more: Our Future in Focus – Ajax Official Plan Review
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The Zoning By-law is a tool that control ls the use of land and buildings. It identifies:
How land and buildings may or may not be used.
The size and location of buildings and structures.
Required lot sizes and dimensions.
Minimum or maximum parking space and loading space requirements.
Minimum and maximum building heights and densities.
The Comprehensive Zoning By-Law Amendment Review is an update to the by-law so that it aligns with the Town’s Official Plan. This update can introduce ‘as-of-right’ (legalized) land use permissions, while introducing standards that ensure urban design policies are followed and the natural environment is protected.
The Inclusionary Zoning By-Law requires new development surrounding the Ajax GO Station to provide a minimum number of affordable units to rent or own. This will encourage more housing to be built in that area, as well as for those commuting by train to work.
Learn more:
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As a Protected Major Transit Station Area, the Ajax GO Station plays a big part in accommodating the future growth and intensification of Ajax, with its potential for high-quality, compact mixed-use (living and working) buildings.
The Town is preparing the Ajax GO Station Secondary Plan, a plan designed to transition the employment lands surrounding the GO Station into a vibrant, mixed-use community that continues promoting job opportunities and maximizes the current and future transit infrastructure.
Learn more about how this area will change at imo.ajax.ca/GoStationPlan.
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The Town’s e-permitting online application portal, which launched April 2025, helps reduce approval timelines for planning applications and building permits. This helps speed up approvals, so new housing can be built and available more quickly.
Explore the portal at eapply.ajax.ca.
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The Publicly Owned Surplus Land Assessment and Inventory is a list of all publicly owned surplus land in Ajax categorized into the criteria that each property can operate under.
Surplus land is land that’s no longer needed for its original purpose and can be repurposed for something new.
Learn more on Page 4 of the May 2024 Planning & Development newsletter.
597
Homes completed
Since January 1st, 2023
The Building Faster Fund
The Building Faster Fund is an incentive program offered by the Province of Ontario that rewards municipalities that make significant progress towards their housing pledge goals.
In 2023, the Town of Ajax was recognized for its progress, achieving 90% of its housing pledge goal of 1,247 units built that year. In recognition of this milestone, the Province awarded the Town of Ajax $4.1 million to help fund housing infrastructure.
With this fund, the Town aims to build over 4,300 new housing units from 2023 to 2025.
Ajax’s Building Faster Fund Targets
| Year | Unit Target |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 1,247 |
| 2024 | 1,417 |
| 2025 | 1,700 |
The Province’s goal is to have 1.5 million homes built by 2031. Ajax is committed to meet its own Housing Pledge of 17,000 units by 2031.
Affordable Housing Agreements
Pursuant to recent amendments to the Planning Act and Development Charges Act, the Town has prepared an affordable housing agreement template for developers which will implement exemptions from development charges, community benefits charges, and cash-in-lieu of parkland dedication, for affordable housing units provided in their projects.
During the application process, developers can request the template to assist their project.
Regional and Provincial Initiatives
Affordable Housing Partnerships - Contact Us
Are you a developer or non-profit organization interested in partnering with the Town on affordable housing initiatives for Ajax? We would like to hear from you. Please email the Town’s Strategic Initiatives Team at Partnerships@ajax.ca with your name and inquiry.