THESE TWO FIXES FOR THE HOUSING CRISIS HAVE A BIGGER IMPACT THAN OTTAWA’S POLICIES
Governments at all levels are finally treating the housing affordability crisis with the urgency it deserves. The latest federal budget produced the most aggressive array of housing policies in generations. The decision to tackle the demand side of the equation by capping the number of non-permanent residents is a giant step in the right direction. Governments are also showing more openness to dramatically changing the role of rental activity in the country’s housing mix. Simply put, the...
read moreWEEK OF APRIL 22 2024 NEWSREEL WITH VANESSA TOPPLE
As part of the April 16th Federal Budget, a centrepiece was the Liberals national housing strategy so, what is it and what are the critics and people saying.
read moreLANDLORD IN THUNDER BAY, ON. WHO SAID HE’S OWED $11K IN RENT CALLS FOR LTB CHANGES
Anshul Jain says he hasn’t received a single payment from two tenants at his rental property in Thunder Bay, Ont., but is most upset about the unpredictability he faces with the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB). Jain is a physiotherapist at a long-term care home in the northwestern Ontario city. He and his wife purchased a rental property at the end of July 2023 in hopes of earning additional income. They inherited the previous owner’s tenants and he said while there have been no...
read moreJUST A FEW BIG LANDLORDS COME UP, AGAIN AND AGAIN, IN ANALYSIS OF ONTARIO’S RENT HIKES
Newly released data from Ontario’s rental housing tribunal analyzed by CBC News shows that fewer than two dozen corporate landlords filed most of the applications to raise rents above provincial guidelines for most of 2022 — which one Toronto housing lawyer says is a sign of the increasing concentration in the province’s rental market. CBC News found that 20 landlords filed over half of the 470 applications in the first eight months of 2022, with the top five filing over a quarter....
read more‘AMBITION… NOT MORE RED TAPE’: OTTAWA’S ASSESSING IMPACT OF ALBERTA’S BILL 18 ON HOUSING
The office for federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser says it’s still assessing Alberta’s Bill 18 for potential impacts on future deals with the provincial government that in turn has warned Ottawa to stay in its constitutional lane. Last week, Premier Danielle Smith introduced her government’s Bill 18 — the Provincial Priorities Act, 2024 — in the legislature. It requires provincial approval for any deal between Ottawa and hundreds of provincial entities ranging from municipalities to...
read moreCANADA’S NEW HOUISING PROGRAM WON’T HELP, BUT SLOWING IMMIGRATION WILL: BMO
Canada just announced billions in new measures to correct the housing issues it created. Last night the Government of Canada (GoC) released its latest budget, including billions in spending on new housing stimulus. BMO provided a list of the recent changes, noting they’ll have a limited impact, given most of the measures are demand stimulus. However, they do see affordability improving soon—due to new limits on immigration. They reiterated that Canada doesn’t have a problem building, it has a...
read moreWEEK OF APRIL 15 2024 NEWSREEL WITH VANESSA TOPPLE
The Ontario government introduced the Cutting Red Tape to Build More Homes Act, as part of its ongoing commitment to cut red tape, speed up government processes and build at least 1.5 million homes by 2031.
read moreELIGIBLE LOW-INCOME RENTERS TO GET ONE-TIME $430 BENEFIT, B.C. GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES
Low-income B.C. seniors and families already enrolled in one of two rental support programs will soon receive a one-time benefit, the province announced Tuesday. Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon announced the $430 payment will be given to seniors and families who are supported through the Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters, or SAFER, program as well as those getting a subsidy through the Rental Assistance Program. “We know that seniors are facing real challenges,” Kahlon said during a...
read moreOTTAWA IS FUNDING AFFORDABLE RENTAL PROJECTS THAT AREN’T ACTUALLY AFFORDABLE
When the $86-million low-interest loan for SoHo Italia apartment tower in Ottawa was announced in the summer of 2020, the federal government press release led with the line: “Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home.” The project would provide housing for the middle class and “those working hard to join it,” said Ahmed Hussen, the cabinet minister then responsible for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., which lent the money under the largest program in the Ottawa’s...
read moreLANDLORDS REMOVING UNITS FROM RENT SUBSIDY PROGRAM, CITING INCREASED OPERATING COSTS
A senior civil servant in the New Brunswick Housing Corporation says his office is looking into an increased trend in landlords taking units off the corporation’s rent subsidy program. Gregory Forestell, the corporation’s vice-president of housing programs, says landlords are opting out of the rent subsidy program as early as five years after entering into agreements with the provincial body. “They’re seeing the opportunity to see a better return on their...
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