People searching for an affordable home in Toronto could soon have a choice never seen before in Canada’s largest city: prefabricated modular condos. Inspired by a style of building found in parts of Scandinavia, Germany and elsewhere in Europe, a trio of companies is hoping to construct three mid-rise condo buildings and do so quickly and sustainably, says Michael Barker, co-founder of R-Hauz Solutions, a firm that builds prefabricated homes.

An overview of the new bill through the lens of industry stakeholders, who comment on the advantages, disadvantages and implications of the More Homes For Everyone Act if passed.

The provincial government released new housing legislation entitled the More Homes for Everyone Act, 2022. This is a very encouraging announcement for accelerating the construction of critically needed new housing supply in Ontario. R-Hauz, a real estate company developing mid-rise mass timber and laneway housing products is especially encouraged with the aspects of the bill that focus on changes to the building code.

A new development partnership will bring Toronto the latest iteration of mass timber construction technology, with project proponents promising to develop the first mass timber condominium project in the city, helping to address the city’s need for missing middle housing affordably and within reasonable timelines.

We recently sat down with Turnkey to discuss our humble beginnings, innovative spirit, and growth within the industry in their new laneway expert blog series..

This was a pilot laneway home for R-Hauz… R-Hauz has two prefabricated laneway homes to choose from. As a prefabricated home, it comes pre-designed and constructed in a factory then assembled on site. “Can you imagine like your neighbour, you left in the morning and see these guys backing a truck down the lane and then you come home at night was the house there?” Moore laughs. The foundation was already laid and the interior drywalling and finishing is done later on site.

His name is Leith Moore, and his modular suites take 10 to 12 weeks to build at a cost of $400 per square foot..

In Toronto’s east end, R-Hauz recently completed a prefab pilot project with major implications for the city’s housing crunch. R-Town is intended to offer a solution to Toronto’s “missing middle” the lack of modern, purpose-built housing for people who don’t want to live in a high-rise and can’t afford to buy a single-family home. “We’re in a housing crisis, and prefab isn’t the only solution, but it’s an important part of the solution,” says Catherine Krug, R-Hauz’s product director.

R-Labs CEO George Carras discusses why everything we now do in housing needs to improve, calling for an unprecedented level of collaboration between industry, consumers, and government.