NEWS RELEASE

CHRA Applauds New Federal Housing Plan, Urges Ongoing Collaboration with Community Housing Sector to Adequately Address Crisis

(April 12, 2024) – Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland, and Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities released Canada’s Housing Plan.

Working towards the goal of more than doubling the supply of non-market community housing, CHRA has been advocating for a “Team Canada” approach, with increased access to funding, financing, and government land to create community housing, a national rental protection fund, as well as additional measures to increase community housing supply. We are pleased to see that the government’s new housing plan features these measures.

We applaud the government for including the measures for which CHRA and our members have tirelessly advocated – they are an excellent step towards solving Canada’s housing challenges. We simultaneously emphasize the importance of the federal government continuing to work in partnership with the community housing sector to roll out these measures and build our collective momentum to end Canada’s housing supply shortfalls.

While CHRA is pleased with the housing measures included in the new housing plan, we emphasize the importance that the federal government must place on ensuring continuous investment in housing for Indigenous peoples living in urban, rural, and northern areas beyond the $4.3 billion invested in Budgets 2022 and 2023. It is imperative that the federal government provide additional investment in this area on an ongoing basis.

In all, the housing measures include:

  1. Boosting Affordable Housing: The government is allocating an additional $1 billion to the Affordable Housing Fund (AHF), building on the previous $1 billion top-up announced in the 2023 Fall Economic Statement. The additional grant and contribution funding will offset the impact of higher interest rates and construction costs. CHRA has been advocating for dedicated funding targeted at creating supportive housing - we welcome the new AHF rapid housing stream and encourage a dedicated funding allocation to maximize impact.
  2. Protecting Rental Affordability: The federal government is introducing a $1.5 billion Canada Rental Protection Fund to help community housing providers secure affordable rental units that are at risk of being sold to investors, ensuring long-term affordability. CHRA and its partners under the Canadian Housing Acquisition Fund are ready to work with the government to implement with initiative.
  3. Unlocking Public Land: Through the Public Lands for Homes plan, the government will unlock underused public land for housing, accelerating availability and creating a mapping tool to track potential sites. CHRA encourages all governments to prioritize non-market community housing on all public lands.
  4. Supporting Co-operative Housing: With the $1.5 billion Co-operative Housing Development Program, previously announced in budget 2022, they aim to facilitate new co-operative housing projects nationwide, starting in summer 2024.
  5. Reducing Construction Costs: The federal government is removing GST from new rental apartment construction projects and supporting non-profit universities, public colleges, and school authorities in building new student residences and co-ops.
  6. Facilitating Apartment Construction: The federal government is reforming the Apartment Construction Loan Program (ACLP) and providing an additional $15 billion in loans to construct at least 30,000 new rental apartments.
  7. Collaborative Building Efforts: Introducing Canada Builds to amplify the impact of federal funding by partnering with provinces and territories with ambitious housing plans. CHRA encourages the federal government to require provinces and municipalities to prioritize non-market community housing and set targets to increase the proportion of non-market housing in their jurisdictions.
  8. Enhancing Housing Data: Investing $20 million for modernizing housing data collection and dissemination to better inform policy decisions.
  9. Accelerating Home Construction: Providing $400 million to the Housing Accelerator Fund to incentivize the creation of 12,000 new homes by streamlining construction processes.
  10. Linking Housing to Transit Funding: Requiring housing-related actions from communities seeking public transit funding, like reducing parking requirements and allowing high-density housing near transit lines and educational institutions. CHRA encourages the federal government to require provinces and municipalities to prioritize non-market community housing and set targets to increase the proportion of non-market housing in their jurisdictions.
  11. Investing in Housing Infrastructure: Launching a $6 billion Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund to support the construction and upgrading of critical housing infrastructure, including water and waste management. CHRA encourages the federal government to require provinces and municipalities to prioritize non-market community housing and set targets to increase the proportion of non-market housing in their jurisdictions.
  12. Promoting Innovation: Introducing $100 million in total investment funds and initiatives to support innovative housing technologies, modular housing, and apprenticeship opportunities in the construction sector.
  13. Tenant Protection and Rights: Establishing a Tenant Protection Fund, creating a Canadian Renters' Bill of Rights, and investing in stabilizing Reaching Home: Canada's Homelessness Strategy to ensure fair treatment and housing stability.

CHRA urges the federal government to work in partnership with the community housing sector to roll out Canada’s Housing Plan, leveraging the combined impact of this new or revamped suite of measures towards an overarching goal: significantly increasing Canada’s supply of community housing from the current 4% of Canada’s overall housing stock.

We recommend that the Government of Canada prioritize the following actions to meet this goal:

  1. Commit to working with CHRA and other community housing leaders through the Canadian Housing Acquisition Fund as the vehicle for implementing the Canadian Rental Protection Fund
  2. Ensure clarity and specificity in the allocation of funds within the Affordable Housing Fund (AHF), including delineating between grants and contributions, expanding loan commitments, and providing additional funding for the Rapid Housing stream, while concurrently implementing program reforms akin to those seen in the Apartment Construction Loan Program (ACLP);
  3. Commit to further funding for urban, rural, and northern Indigenous housing; and
  4. Commit to prioritizing non-market community housing under the new the Public Lands for Homes Fund.

Up until the 1990’s, Canada invested in growing non-profit, co-operative, and public housing. After subsequent decades of declining government investment, Canada finds itself in housing crisis that is impacting affordability and access to housing for households across Canada. Millions of Canadian households need housing at a more affordable cost than the market can provide – they need community housing.

According to a November 2023 report by Deloitte, increasing community housing supply by a meagre 1.5% can boost economic productivity by 5.7% to 9.3% and increase GDP by $67 billion to $136 billion annually. The boost to Canada’s productivity that can be unlocked with increased investment in community housing benefits everyone – whether they need community housing or not.

In other words, bold policy action to increase Canada’s supply of community housing can address the housing crisis, alleviate the affordability crisis, and increase the standard of living of everyone in Canada.

“The Government of Canada’s new housing plan is an important step towards ensuring everyone has a place to call home. But this goal cannot be realized without true reconciliation with Indigenous peoples: that requires sufficient, ongoing funding for an Urban, Rural, and Northern Indigenous housing strategy. The Government of Canada must prioritize the needs of Indigenous people living in urban, rural, and northern areas and work towards a future where all Indigenous peoples have access to safe, secure, and affordable housing.” – Margaret Pfoh, President, CHRA & CEO of Aboriginal Housing Management Association

“The Canadian Housing and Renewal Association represents hundreds of community housing leaders: experts with practical on-the-ground experience making housing happen in their communities. The community housing sector has solutions for the housing crisis, and we are pleased to see that the Government of Canada’s new housing plan reflects our recommendations. We are standing ready to work in partnership with the Government of Canada to implement this new plan and build on the momentum that these measures can generate.” – Ray Sullivan, Executive Director, Canadian Housing and Renewal Association

For more information, contact:

Jacob Gorenkoff, Founder & CEO, Homeward Public Affairs
jacob@homewardpa.ca
C: 416-893-8185