Housing policy news: June 2022

FEDERAL 

• The Federal Housing Advocate is now accepting submissions on systemic housing issues in Canada The Office of the Federal Housing Advocate has launched an online tool to accept submissions from communities impacted by inadequate housing and homelessness from across Canada. By sharing their experiences of housing precarity and inadequacy, communities can help inform the Advocate’s recommendations to the government to improve Canada’s housing laws, policies and programs. This is a keyway that communities can participate in driving change and advancing the right to housing for all.  
• Two submissions on systemic housing issues facing women and gender-diverse people have been delivered to the Federal Housing Advocate On June 14, theWomen’s National Housing & Homelessness Network and the National Indigenous Feminist Housing Working Group delivered two submissions to the Federal Housing Advocate on systemic housing issues experienced by marginalized women and gender-diverse people. The submissions outline how the failure to invest in affordable housing violates women and gender-diverse people’s right to equality and right to housing. They highlight how the National Housing Strategy is failing those who are impacted the most by the housing crisis – Indigenous women, girls, and Two-Spirit persons; single mothers living on low-incomes; women with disabilities; Black and racialized women and gender-diverse people; newcomers and refugees; and many others who face intersecting forms of marginalization.  
• New study finds that Canadians with disabilities are much more likely to live in unaffordable homes or units in need of major repairs A new study by Statistics Canada examined data from the 2016 Census and found that 25 per cent of people with disabilities live in unaffordable homes, compared to 20 per cent of the total population. People with disabilities are also more likely to live in rental housing, in subsidized units, in overcrowded units, and in units in need of major repairs. 
• Black-led organizations can now apply for federal funding to build housing for Black households The federal government is accepting applications from eligible Black-led organizations to receive up to 40 per cent of funding for new affordable housing projects that will benefit Black households. Funded projects can include community and affordable housing, mixed-use market rental housing, conversion from non-residential use to affordable housing, shelters, and transitional and supportive housing.  

ONTARIO 

• Ontario has set the 2023 rent increase at 2.5 per cent The provincial government has set the maximum amount a landlord can raise the rent for an existing tenant at 2.5 per cent in 2023, which is double the amount set in 2022, and the highest amount since 2013. Usually, the government ties the rent increase amount to the Ontario Consumer Price Index, which would have pushed the 2023 amount to 5.3 per cent. The government said that it limited the increase to help protect tenants from significant increases, however advocates say that the 2.5 per cent figure is still too high. The rent increase guideline applies to most renters in Ontario who are covered by the Residential Tenancies Act. However it does not apply to vacant units, community housing, long-term care homes, or units that were first occupied after November 15, 2018. 
• Toronto’s Rent Bank program is now permanently grant-based On June 16, Toronto City Council voted in favour of converting its Rent Bank program to offer grants on a permanent basis, moving away from their previous repayable loans model. This move will help lower income residents cover deposits or pay their rent. Several advocates expressed their support for this move while encouraging the City to consider strengthening the program in the future. CERA recommended that the City increase funding and make the eligibility criteria more inclusive, while also protecting the existing stock of affordable housing and creating new affordable housing options for lower income residents to reduce the need for rent relief in the long run. 
   

SASKATCHEWAN

• Saskatchewan expands its housing benefit program but advocates say that gaps remain The Saskatchewan Housing Benefit is now available to renters who pay 35 per cent or more of their pre-tax housing income on rent. The benefit amount and asset eligibility limit have also been increased, and rent limits have been removed. The government says that these changes will allow more low-income households to receive the benefit. However, advocates say the expansion does not go far enough as several vulnerable groups remain ineligible to receive support, including people who receive other government assistance, residents in social housing programs, sponsored newcomers, and post-secondary students. 

BRITISH COLUMBIA 

• Vancouver approves a plan to increase density along its Broadway corridor After weeks of consultation, Vancouver City Council has passed its “Broadway Plan”, which proposes to increase the density and variety of housing types in the area, including affordable housing, around an important transit hub. Several details in the plan have been deferred to the next Council which will be elected in October 2022. However, some important elements have been passed, including measures to protect existing tenants and prevent them from being displaced from their neighbourhoods.    

NORTHWEST TERRITORIES

• Gwich’in communities will be consulted on how a federal housing and infrastructure investment should be spent The Gwich’in Tribal Council is planning to consult Gwich’in communities to hear their priorities for how $25 million should be spent to address their critical housing and infrastructure needs. Grand Chief Ken Kyikavichik welcomed the investment while highlighting that much more is needed in their communities where the housing needs are at a critical level, and infrastructure needs alone could cost $100 million. Another $42 million will be invested in Tłı̨chǫ communities, where Grand Chief Jackson Lafferty says 35 per cent of homes are in need of major repairs. The investments are part of the federal government’s Indigenous Community Infrastructure Fund.