System Thinking
Housing has quietly become one of the most engineered systems in the economy. A look at why costs keep rising — and whether it is really the market or the rules.
By The Ballpark Team
Why Housing Costs Keep Rising
Housing has quietly become one of the most engineered systems in the Canadian economy. In 1970, the median home cost about 2.7x the median household income. Today, it's over 5x, with roughly 62% of middle-class wealth tied up in housing.
What used to be shelter is now a leveraged financial instrument, and the entire system — from policy to lending to local decision-making — is built around preserving its value.
When rates rose sharply in 2022, the expectation was that prices would come down. Instead, the market stalled. Buyers pulled back, but so did sellers. Homeowners locked into low rates had little incentive to move, effectively freezing supply at the same time demand was weakening. The result wasn't a reset, it was stagnation.
If some Canadian cities can still build while others barely move, is affordability really about the market or the rules we've put in place?
How many buyers are being filtered out before they even get started?
And if fewer people can access ownership at the same stage of life as the generation before them, what kind of system are we actually building?
T-Minus 9 Days
If you're new here, we've been building Ballpark for the past two years, both in private and in public.
Below is a podcast Ndidi and I recorded in early 2025 on how it all started. As we get closer to launch, it's been cool to look back and see how far things have come.
Ballpark launches on April 23 to a private group at a venue in Edmonton, followed by more events and announcements.
Follow along on Instagram and YouTube, or reach out at akeem@ballparkhousing.com.
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