The
Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation insures mortgages so aspiring
homeowners need a lower down payment. But the CMHC also keeps a finger on the
pulse of the housing market in each community, both ownership and rental.
Theirnews for Barrie isn’t good. Rental vacancy rates dropped to 1.7% in
2011 and are projected to be only 1.5% in 2012. A healthy vacancy rate is 3%, providing
a good choice in units for tenants and a secure market for landlords.
Two
main consequences of low vacancy rates are higher rents and worse choice in
units. People must settle for apartments which are too small, in the wrong part
of town, or otherwise substandard, yet pay more for them. Lousy or overpriced
housing is one more stress for families already struggling with higher electric
and water bills and increasing gas prices or transit fares.
New
rental housing isn’t coming very fast, if at all. There are promises to include
affordable housing in the mix in the new annexation lands, but those are still many
years off. Even once construction starts, higher density affordable units are
usually the last to be built, only after the developers have made the big money
selling premium properties.
Intensification
is great, but there is a dearth of affordable housing proposals for our
existing urban areas. Any higher density proposal meets with zoning obstacles
and neighbourhood opposition, and most apartment buildings that get approved
are aimed at seniors. This leaves out the rest of the demographics.
One
of the best and quickest solutions would be to increase the facility for second
units (apartments in houses, or granny suites) in all existing neighbourhoods.
In fact, in recognition of this, the province is requiring municipalities to
alter their official plans to allow for greater use of this housing mode, as
part of the Strong Communities through Affordable Housing Act.
Second
suites are a gentle form of intensification. Requiring no new construction or
infrastructure, they don’t create a visible change in the neighbourhood. Instead,
they fill underutilized space in existing homes. Our houses have grown larger
while average family size has shrunk, leaving a lot of half-empty homes that
can easily be split and shared.
Second
units make housing more affordable for tenants and owners. A young family buying
a home can rent out part of it to help pay the mortgage. Seniors and
empty-nesters with an apartment get help with expenses, and someone to share
yard work and show-shoveling duties. Aging or emptying residential areas are
renewed as younger families move in. Having more residents improves the sense
of community and security of the street.
In
part two, I will address myths behind common objections to second suites.
Published in the Barrie Examiner as Root Issues: "Second suites a gentle form of intensification"
Erich Jacoby-Hawkins is a director of the Ontario
School of Economic Science and Earthsharing Canada.
Thoughtful post Erich! We have a substantial problem in Guelph of students living in either secondary suites or, more emphatically, students living in houses owned by absentee landlords. Students come out of living in the University residence without having learned about accountability or being a good neighbour and seemingly increasingly run into problems of litter, noise and other actions inconsiderate of their more permanent community members.
ReplyDeleteGenerally this problem originally stems from insufficient planning by the municipality, so the market responds. Absentee landlords trying to maximize their return will usually prefer a non-divided house, because it leaves more rooms to be rented out. Second suites tend more towards resident landlords, or at least those who have families (rather than students) as tenants.
ReplyDeleteBarrie has this student party-house problem, too - I think it's universal in college towns. I didn't (mis)behave like that when I was that age, so I'm not sure how the problem is created or how to solve it. But I'm sure that banning second suites (as is essentially the case right now in Barrie) doesn't do anything to solve the problem, and may in fact make it worse.
Rental vacancy only shows how the market is going on. The prediction may not come as a surprise.
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