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🛠 What governments are doing to fix the housing crisis

Canada’s national housing agency (CMHC) shared a behemoth update on the state of housing in the first half of 2024.

The Good:

• Housing starts (# of homes that began construction) was up 4% in first half of 2024

• 68,639 new units is the second highest tally since the 90s

• Rental housing makes up almost half of this, highest share on record

The Bad:

• Might be the second highest number, but when we consider population, it’s similar to the historical average and doesn’t satisfy demand

• Calgary, Edmonton, and Montreal are carrying the growth in housing starts

• Why is this bad? — it means housing starts went DOWN from last year in Toronto, Vancouver, and Ottawa…

The Ugly:

• 68k units includes data from 6 of Canada’s biggest cities, yet we need 3 million new homes by 2030 for affordability

• Even if we upped the pace to 100k new starts every 6 months, we would only have 1.1 million new housing starts by the start of 2030

• Safe to say that’s not good enough

If you want to listen to a 15 min summary, CMHC recorded a short podcast with its Deputy Chief Economist Aled ab Iorwerth that talks through the specifics.

The most disheartening detail here is the drop in new housing starts in Toronto, Vancouver, and Ottawa — let’s unpack why it happened.

You’d think that at this point in the housing crisis, governments would be aligned with the private sector on what’s needed to get housing built, especially in a less than ideal economic landscape.

Toronto have actually increased fees for new condos by 42% in the last year, perhaps trying to encourage more rental housing. Fees now account for ~25% of new condo prices in the city, one reason why so many condos are vacant — no one can afford them.

One report makes it clear that the status quo isn’t working. Similar challenges are facing Vancouver.

We absolutely need more rental housing everywhere, but we also need lots of other kinds, including more affordable housing for sale.

One coalition of Toronto developers have signed a pledge to cut their prices by a dollar for every dollar of municipal fees removed from the process.

While cutting fees for builders isn’t the only option, it’s one way to make it easier to build housing in a less-than-ideal economic state.

The approvals process is another option that governments are reworking. Right now, it can take years to get permission to create new housing. As builders work through the process, they are paying fees, which ultimately get baked into the final housing prices.

BC passed new legislation last fall centred around progressive urban planning that should speed up the process when implemented.

In addition, a new program called BC Builds was established in 2023 to:

1. Identify low-cost land for development

2. Connect landowners and developers

3. Reduce pre-construction timeline to less than 18 months from the current 3 to 5 years

Essentially, making it easier to add density on land owned by government, non-profits, faith-based groups, and more.

The feds liked this concept so much that they announced Canada Builds, which would use the country’s $55 billion construction loan program to partner with provinces and territories to launch their own version of BC Builds.

If executed correctly, it could be incredibly promising.

Private funding makes up 96% of housing investment in Canada right now. If we are going to hit our target for 2030, we need to couple this with greater government investment and efficient policies to help deliver a diverse range of new housing.

While Canada’s Budget 2024 takes an aggressive approach at tackling the housing shortage, there was only one line focused on investment in housing for young people. It’s a start, but not enough.

Behind the scenes, we continue to use our research and network to advocate for more housing policies and opportunities specifically targeted at young people.

👏 Good news in housing

Federal and provincial governments investing $4.2m in 102 affordable Ontario units

2 levels of government are stepping into 3 projects in the Kenora region to bring 96 affordable homes for seniors and 6 supportive housing units to market. This is a fantastic start, but we need all kinds of housing. We continue to advocate for the needs of young people and are working with partners to explore what affordable student housing might look like. Keep reading…

83 new affordable homes finished in Downtown Vancouver

Located on Nicola Street, there are 42 units for families and 5 accessible units. The project is meant to cater to a diverse mix of residents. Since 2017, there have been 9 projects for a total of 700 social housing units completed in partnership with developers. Keep reading…

Building with 100 social and affordable housing units coming near Montreal

Canada and Quebec are investing $23.5 million in the 6-storey building to create a mix of bachelor, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom units. Rent for bachelor suites will be set at $595, while two-bed rents will be $900. This is part of a 10 project, $235 million investment in 10 cities around the province. Keep reading…

🙋 We’re giving away another $500!

We just wrapped up a 200 student survey at SFU in six days, made possible by our amazing campus ambassadors. Do you think you have what it takes to get students involved (or maybe you just want to earn a dollar for every response)?

If you want to become an ambassador on your campus, reply to this email to learn more.

Capilano University is next. Do you or someone you know go to CapU and want to help? Fill out the quick survey below for a chance to win one of five $100 rent rebates! This $500 brings our total giveaways to date to $9,000!

Find the CapU student survey here.

🗂 Resources for new renters

Whether it’s your first time living on your own or you’ve been renting for years, this is the time of year that lots of young people are getting settled in new places. We’ve compiled resources from provincial advocacy centres to get you started. Many university student societies have their own list of resources as well.

Ontario

Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario: Tip sheets, free legal advice, and reform updates.

British Columbia

Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre: Free legal education for BC tenants, template letters, and access to free legal advice.

Alberta

Laws for Landlords and Tenants in Alberta: Information on disputes, notices, responsibilities, and everything else you could ever need.

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