HCRA-The Home Construction Regulatory Authority - North York, Ontario

Bryan J.

How is it you have to jump through all these hoops to obtain a builders license, that only last for a year, when it takes 3 years to build a subdivision? These guys are overly concerned with procedures at the expense of efficiency or common sense. They put small builders, who have been building for years years out of business, and all trades associated with those builders out of work. Don't even get me started of their public smearing campaigns
It's a joke. You can't even build with deposits anymore. Guess what? that means more lending is involved and higher costs for consumers because margins are tighter
They are part of the reason why young people can't afford homes and why we dont have enough....DEREGULATE these people!

teja N.

I filed a complaint against a home builder and its been nearly two years. The one who originally following up my complaints has left the HCRA. So far the only response I get from HCRA is, we are still reviewing your complaint.

This is 2023, I don't even know if my complaint will ever reach a conclusion. They could do a better job at this. I will revisit this review next year, and update if needed.

Update: March 10, 2024. No progress made on my complaint.

Sam C.

This organization is an absolute joke as you can see from the other reviews.

You'll make a complaint and then never hear from them again. I made a complaint 10 months ago and have followed up numerous times - they basically ignore you and do nothing.

These guys are a black pit of taxpayer money who do nothing all day but accept paperwork and throw it in the trash bin.

Gayle D.

Don’t expect HCRA to look after your new home builder complaints. See my pinned tweet @GayleDudeck for our family nightmare experience. Prospective HCRA employees, please review my pinned tweet too. If you have a conscience or any morals at all you’ll be thinking twice.

Bart C.

I’m a builder. Ive registered with HCRA . Paid my $500 and did not realize my licence had expired. Ive been registered with Tarion for over 30 years. HCRA . Trying to re register is a nightmare. Everyone is on holidays ! Seriously, we need to build homes, employ people so they could feed their families and NO ONE is able to help us reregister !!! Talk about holding up the economy. Didnt we just go though a pandemic !!!! People need to eat. No wonder there is such a huge underground economy !!!!

Geoff H.

I'm a first-time pre-construction home-buyer and my experience with my builder has been nothing short of a nightmare. It's incredible how the builder has taken advantage of every possible loophole and even pushes beyond loopholes to twist our arm to squeeze as much money and time out of us as possible. I shudder to imagine ever having to go through this again. A home is by far the largest financial investment most of us will ever make. It's where we live out most of our lives. Has there ever been an industry as in need of objective regulation and governance as this one?

My experience with the much-needed HCRA has been a breath of fresh air. The website was very useful for me to lookup my builder's licensing status (...which i found had expired!). The HRCA's customer service was responsive and helpful when I followed up with questions. My hope is that they continue improving their services to enable us home owners and themselves to hold builders accountable for shady practices and shoddy work. If the recent builder charge from the HRCA is a sign of more to come (lookup "Builder charged with allegedly selling homes without a licence" on the Globe and Mail), I'm optimistic. I'm feeling less lost, and more empowered already.

Jai D. B.

I submitted my complaint about my new builder in March 2022. no one OPENED MY COMPLAINT for 7-8 MONTHS and better do not contact them , you will just waste your time. No one can wait so long for them to open your complaint and then they will take another 7-8 months to find resolution to your complaint. better hire some other professional to solve your complaint yourself.

spider M.

Ineffective and disappointing, funded by taxpayers yet seemingly aligned with builders. Complaints go unanswered, lingering for months only to be quietly closed. It's evident that builder interests take precedence over citizens'. Perhaps it's time to consider the department's necessity given its lack of impactful action.