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Affordable Housing: More Than a Roof Over Your Head

Affordable housing addresses a basic need in communities across Canada — the need for safe, stable and suitable places for families and individuals to live. But affordable housing does more than provide a roof over your head — it makes our communities better places to live, work and grow.

While affordable housing has the greatest impact on occupants themselves, its benefits for the broader community are varied and far-reaching.

For example, investments in affordable housing generate economic activity at the local level. It is estimated that an investment of $1 million in the construction of new housing creates 11 direct and indirect jobs; for renovation projects, such an investment creates more than 15 direct and indirect jobs. And because 80 per cent of the materials used in Canadian housing are made in Canada, there are spinoff jobs, as well.

Affordable housing projects can help communities make more efficient use of land and existing infrastructure. The City of Ottawa, for example, worked with the owner of a single-detached home on a double lot to build a three-storey, eight-unit infill building on the property. This project not only contributed to the City’s urban intensification policy but also created affordable rental housing for students and lower-income workers in the neighbourhood. Five years later, rents remain affordable.

Existing buildings can be reclaimed and reused for affordable housing, rather than falling victim to the wrecker’s ball. Converting a surplus or vacated building into affordable housing makes good use of existing infrastructure, is often less costly than new construction and can help maintain the character of a neighbourhood. A good example is the Îlot Saint-Mathias project in Jonquière, Quebec, in which a former school constructed during the Second World War was converted into a residential building, thus increasing the supply of affordable housing while preserving a piece of the city’s architectural heritage.

For occupants themselves, affordable housing often means more than shelter — it means greater independence, new opportunities and new hope for the future. In Charlottetown, parents of high-functioning adults with intellectual disabilities became concerned about the lack of housing options for their children, who were able to live on their own but required some support with daily activities. The parents formed a non-profit corporation, Life Bridge Inc., which built a 12-unit supportive housing project. Life Bridge Inc. also worked with community groups to find job training and employment opportunities for residents, allowing them to participate more fully in the community.

In Edmonton, the Women Building Futures (WBF) non-profit society was able to achieve a number of objectives with a single project. By renovating an existing warehouse in Edmonton, WBF created 42 units of affordable housing and provided training opportunities for women interested in careers in the construction, oil and gas trades. The decision to renovate rather than build a new centre reduced costs, and WBF was able to use the renovation project to provide on-the-job training.

Throughout Canada, communities are benefiting in many ways from projects to create more affordable housing. Individuals and local organizations are at the heart of these efforts, but CMHC is there to help.

CMHC’s team of experts offers first-hand knowledge of approaches that have been implemented by private companies, the not-for-profit sector and municipalities to develop affordable housing in communities across Canada. In addition to offering project-specific expertise, CMHC can help determine if a housing project is financially viable, identify resources and other potential partners, and share information on what has worked in other communities.

To find out how you can engage a CMHC expert in your project, or to learn more about people and projects assisted by CMHC, visit www.cmhc.ca/affordablehousing.