Royal Bank of Canada and the Pembina Institute’s Home Location Study released in 2012 found that over 80% of Greater Toronto Area (GTA) residents would give up a large home and yard to live in a "location-efficient" neighbourhood that is transit-friendly, walkable, and offers shorter commute times. However, more than 70% of residents in the GTA live where they do because of affordability rather than a preference. Households are choosing car-dependent neighbourhoods mostly because of prices rather than a preference for the location.

Priced Out: Understanding the factors affecting home prices in the GTA is a follow-up study researched and written by the Pembina Institution, co-published by RBC, that explores the factors contributing to rising home prices in the GTA, and how homebuyers are being "priced out" of location-efficient options.

Key findings include:

- There is no shortage of land throughout the GTA to build single-family homes for decades to come, but this land is predominantly located far from the City of Toronto and other established centres of employment.
- There is limited supply of land to build single-family homes in established, location-efficient neighbourhoods where people want to live; therefore, home prices have increased and will continue to rise in these locations.
- Due to scarcity of affordable single-family housing stock in established location-efficient neighbourhoods, demand has shifted to comparatively more affordable multi-unit homes, and prices have risen accordingly. Many homebuyers are being "priced out" of established neighbourhoods and are faced with a trade-off: condominium style living in transit-accessible neighbourhoods or owning a single-family home located in car-dependent neighbourhoods.
- There is no evidence that Provincial land use policies, including the Greenbelt Plan and the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, restrict housing development and contribute to rising home prices.

Read the full report: