Waiving the GST was just a start. These 3 ideas could help get more housing built in Canada

The federal government's decision to eliminate the GST on purpose-built rentals is expected to add tens of thousands of units to the housing market. But it's just the first step needed if Canada wants to actually close the housing gap.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this week announced the move to waive the federal portion of the HST on the construction of rental housing.

Mike Moffatt, senior director of policy and innovation at the Smart Prosperity Institute in Ottawa, is still trying to figure out precisely how the elimination of the tax will impact supply. But he crunched the numbers after the federal announcement and says some back-of-the-envelope calculations are encouraging.

"I think this could increase supply by 200,000 to 300,000 by end of 2030, but that was a really rough estimate," he told CBC News.

That's encouraging, but industry players say governments at all levels must do more — much more — to build enough housing in this country. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) says 3.5 million new homes are needed by the end of 2030.

That would require Canada to build at a faster rate than this country has seen in decades. But there are some simple steps that can help move things along.

"I always look at it in three buckets: You need the approvals, you need the people to build these things and you need a way to finance it," said Ana Bailão, the former deputy mayor of Toronto and housing advocate.

"Right now, we're having issues in all three buckets," she said.

Bailão says all levels of government need to step up and make changes. But with the stroke of a pen, she says, cities can dramatically speed up the approvals process.

The City of Toronto has started making some changes to its zoning regulations, but people like Bailão are pushing the city to go much further in its next phase, which is still being considered.

The concept she's calling for is called "upzoning." It would match local zoning with the city's plan to increase density in specific areas.

"Right now, you have to go through a rezoning process, which takes a minimum of a year if not more — even though we've agreed we want density on those streets," Bailão said.

And that doesn't just mean new condo towers. Density comes in all shapes and sizes.

In Vancouver, sweeping changes have just been approved to allow and encourage the building of multiplexes.