The COVID Compensation Hangover: It’s 2025 and Some People Still Think It’s 2021

The development boom is long gone, but someone forgot to tell the recently laid-off. It’s 2025, projects are paused, financing is scarce, and hiring is slow—but a lot of folks still expect champagne salaries in a tap water market. Here’s what I’m seeing from the hiring frontlines.

I'm hiring in 2025.
And let me tell you—it feels like trying to buy a house in mid-2022. Everyone wants yesterday’s price, nobody wants to negotiate, and the fundamentals no longer support the fantasy.

With layoffs trickling through the industry and new development crawling along like a Zoning Review at City Hall, I thought this would be the perfect time to scoop up some great people.

What I didn’t expect?
That a large chunk of the talent pool still thinks it’s 2021.

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🧨 The Boom Days Are Over (But the Hangover Lingers)

Remember during COVID when salaries exploded?

Developers were desperate. Projects were everywhere. Everyone needed people, and no one had time to train them. If you had a LinkedIn profile and could say “entitlement” without stuttering, you were basically an endangered species.

I’m hearing stories from other developers where coordinators were hired at $110K with barely three years of experience. Managers were getting $170K offers just for answering their phones.

People bounced between jobs like they were swiping through a dating app—taking the best offer, riding the wave, no questions asked.

Now?
The music stopped. The lights are on. And there’s a long line at the coat check.

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💼 What I’m Seeing in 2025

• Project pipelines have slowed to a trickle.

• Equity has gotten expensive—or vanished.

• Permits are jammed up.

• And landowners are doing that “maybe we’ll build in 2027” shuffle.

Meanwhile, I’m getting resumes from recently laid-off professionals asking for $180K base, 4-day workweeks, and hybrid flexibility.

That would’ve been a stretch in the bull market. In 2025? It’s not even in the stadium.

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🧾 Let’s Talk Numbers

• 🔻 Construction job postings are down 43% from their 2022 peak.

• 🧱 Over 200+ mid- and high-rise projects in Ontario are paused, delayed, or quietly shelved.

• 💸 Average PM comp peaked in 2022—but 2025 is seeing a 15–20% downward adjustment across the board.

• 📉 The number of new housing starts in the GTA fell by 27% in 2024 alone.

And yet… expectations haven’t moved an inch.

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🏘️ It's the Same Story in Real Estate

Hiring right now feels exactly like trying to buy in the current housing market.

• Sellers want 2022 prices.

• Buyers want a deal.

• No one wants to blink.

• Everyone sits on their hands and waits.

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💡 Here's What I'm Actually Looking For:

I’m not hunting for someone who thinks they're still in a bidding war.

I’m looking for sharp, grounded people who understand this cycle. People who are realistic, ready to work, and hungry to grow—because when the market turns again (and it will), those are the people who move up fastest.

This is a cleanup year.
We’re not throwing money around. We’re tightening up, cutting fat, and planning smart.

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🧠 Final Word:

If you're job hunting right now, it’s time to recalibrate.

What you were paid in 2021 wasn’t your value.
It was the market’s panic.

That market’s gone.
And in 2025, reality is back in fashion.