Real Estate too pricey for many
Terry Pedwell, The Canadian press
While more and more Canadians own homes, a new report says the country’s poorest struggle just to keep a roof over their heads.
The report by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities says it’s very difficult, and at times impossible, for some Canadians to find affordable real estate in the country’s biggest urban areas.
“Canadians must not forget that, despite our general prosperity, decent affordable housing is beyond the reach of many,” said Brenda Hogg, chair of the federation’s social and economic development committee.
The report’s authors warn that the situation is growing worse as real estate prices continue to outpace income growth and fewer rental units are constructed.
“While rental housing remains an alternative to home ownership, construction of new rental housing lagged far behind historical levels,” said a news release accompanying the report.
“Fewer than nine per cent of all housing units completed in Canada’s largest cities between 2001 and 2006 were rental units.”
As well, the report says homelessness remains a growing problem for urban Canada, requiring cities to establish close to 20,000 permanent shelter beds.
“Many low-income families, including children, are living on the brink of homelessness or living in substandard housing,” said Ms. Hogg, who is also a York Region councillor living in Richmond Hill, Ont.
“Families on social assistance are faced with difficult housing choices, including living in unaffordable, inadequate, illegal or overcrowded housing conditions,” she said Wednesday following the report’s release.
“And their are signs the underlying fundamentals are getting worse.”
The report looked at affordable housing and homelessness between 2001 and 2006 in 22 large and medium-sized municipalities and urban regions across the country.
They include Canada’s biggest cities, such as Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, as well as large regional municipalities in Ontario and Quebec.
The problem will only be exacerbated as baby boomers grow older, especially as low-income home construction continues to decline, said Hogg.
“The population of Canadian cities are aging, and there are more seniors on social housing,” she said.
“Whatever housing that we do have in the lower-income range is aging and it’s not being replaced well enough.”
The federation was scheduled to release its strategy for tackling the problem on Jan. 23 in Vancouver.
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