Housing affordability was at the forefront of big-ticket federal budget announcements last week, and CHF BC is pleased to see Ottawa’s focus on an issue affecting the lives of millions of Canadians so directly.

There’s a lot to dissect in the $10 billion devoted to housing in Budget 2022, and we’ve analyzed the funding commitments to help you better understand what to expect in the coming years.

Here’s a brief snapshot:

First, the hits:

• A new $1.5 billion investment in co-op housing to deliver 6,000 new co-op homes
• Additional $1.5 billion for the Rapid Housing Initiative to create 6,000+ new affordable homes
• $2.9 billion under the Co-Investment Fund to accelerate the creation of 4,000 new homes and repair nearly 18,000 existing affordable homes
• $4 billion for a municipal Housing Accelerator Fund, with a goal of creating 100,000 new homes
• Co-development of an Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy

And the misses:

• No recognition that we are losing affordable homes faster than we can build them due to investor purchase of existing rental homes.
• The Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy lacks commitment to “For Indigenous, By Indigenous” principles, and there is no mention of funding the strategy once it’s created.
• $475 million for one-time payment of $500 to people facing housing challenges could be better used to deliver effective, long-term solutions to housing affordability.

For more details—including our final verdict—please download our full budget analysis (pdf).

Reactions

Reactions to this funding have been positive, from sector organizations, to unions, and even Finance There’s a lot to dissect in the $10 billion devoted to housing in Budget 2022, and we’ve analyzed the funding commitments to help you better understand what to expect in the coming years. herself, who said on CBC’s Edmonton AM: “One of the measures that I’m personally really excited about is $1.5 billion to build new co-ops in Canada. That is the biggest investment in building new co-ops — a great form of housing — in 30 years.” (via CHF Canada)

Here are some other noteworthy reactions to the co-op housing development funding (via CHF Canada):

• “We are very pleased, but we are cautiously optimistic, too, that the program design will enable those homes to be built in every type of market, including Metro Vancouver and the rest of B.C.” Thom Armstrong, Executive Director, Co-operative Housing Federation of BC  (Storeys: Real Estate News)
• “Certainly overdue, but extremely welcome news…Given the desperation that people are facing in today’s housing market, people need stability, a sense of control and greater affordability in a strong community, and housing co-operatives offer all of that and more.” Tim Ross, Executive Director, CHF Canada  (Ottawa Citizen)
• “It is important to recognize this powerful model of housing as many people face the desperation and anxiety of today’s housing market: characterized by renoviction and ever changing rents.” Ayanna Innis, Executive Director, Northern Alberta Co-operative Housing Association (CBC News Edmonton)
• “Tom Clement said the budget vow was ‘significant’ …he hopes to see a program that offers some long-term certainty, in order to ensure a steady pipeline of new co-op units…‘To look at this as a long-term investment, to me, is really key.’ Tom Clement, Executive Director, Co-operative Housing Federation of Toronto (Toronto Star)

Related:

• CHF Canada’s response
• BCNPHA’s response
• “We Need Duct Tape, But Instead We Got Cheesecloth”: Fed Budget Gets Mixed Response in B.C. Storeys
• Reaction to the 2022 federal budget. CCPA
• Budget 2022 is big on housing, but won’t immediately relieve affordability crisis. RBC