By Jeremy Davis
The topic of increasing housing supply is one that is on the radars of every level of government in Canada from coast to coast to coast, and is a topic that the Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board has been advocating on for some time. The Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board’s market region continues to be one of the most affordable real estate markets in Canada and it is vital that we see that trend continue.
In September, Prime Minister Mark Carney officially launched Build Canada Homes, a federal agency that will build affordable housing with a goal of creating 4,000 homes across six federally owned sites, including one at Winnipeg’s Naawi-Odeena. A former Kapyong Barracks site, Naawi-Oodena represents a 160-acre piece of prime real estate in the middle of Winnipeg and is the largest Indigenous economic zone in Canada that is on track to accommodate up to 3,000 homes and up to 1.2 million square feet of commercial space.
Build Canada Homes’ focus will be on building transitional and supportive housing by partnering with provincial, territorial, municipal and Indigenous governments, and private market developers using a public-private partnership model. The federal government hopes that bringing all aspects of housing together under one umbrella will make it easier and quicker for projects to proceed.
The federal government believes it is well-positioned to lead this process since they have access to the capital that can provide incentives, federal lands that can be utilized for housing projects, and the ability to bring all stakeholders together in a national effort to double construction of housing projects, address affordability and reduce homelessness. The private sector will focus on construction capacity, innovation, supply chains and financing.
The three pillars of Build Canada Homes
Build Canada Homes will rely on three pillars in its approach to getting homes built:
1. The $13 billion Build Canada Homes agency will partner with governments and industry to promptly build affordable housing at scale, funding to enable flexible financing, and making federal land available to help builders create big housing projects.
2. In addition to making capital available, Build Canada Homes will use innovative home construction technologies to cut building times, reduce costs and lower emissions. The goal is to spur on a housing industry that builds quickly and more sustainably.
3. Build Canada Homes will prioritize projects that use Canadian building materials in hopes of bolstering domestic supply chains, supporting high-paying jobs and scaling up the Canadian housing industry.
The mandate of Build Canada Homes
The official mandate for Build Canada Homes is to:
1. Increase the proportion of non-market, mission driven affordable housing for low to middle income households.
2. Assist in creating an environment for a growing non-market housing sector which relies on innovative partnerships with the end goal of reducing continual government subsidies.
3. Create predictable, long-term demand for housing built in Canadian factories which will bring the industry up to capacity while reducing the cost of home construction and the time required to build homes.
In addition, it was recently announced that the Build Canada Homes Affordable Housing Fund will see a top-up of $1.5 billion to the New Construction Stream which hopes to create over 5,000 new housing units. The fund will also see $385 million over three years directed toward its Rapid Housing Sub-Stream. Partner organizations for the Affordable Housing Fund will be eligible for capital to be used for new affordable housing and renovating existing housing in the form of low interest and/or forgivable loans.
As part of the announcement, Prime Minister Carney announced the appointment of Ana Bailão as the Chief Executive Officer of Build Canada Homes. Ms. Bailão has experience with using government lands to build housing from her time serving on Toronto’s City Council.
While the exact details on investment policies and submission guide will be released in the coming months, Build Canada Homes is inviting interested parties to connect to discuss potential projects through the following email address: BCHInquiries-DemandesMC@infc.gc.ca
For Winnipeg, Naawi-Odeena initially included plans for approximately 3,000 new residential units and its inclusion in the Government of Canada’s Build Canada Homes initiative is welcome news. What is also welcome, is another injection of housing that will help bolster supply in our market region, now and into the future.
Jeremy Davis is the Winnipeg Regional Real Estate Board’s Director of External Relations & Market Intelligence.