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This:

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Is also heading to next week's Ctte, and can be found here:


The red items that just jump out are Targets 1, 4 and 5
 
artyboy123 said:
another one!

Click to expand...

I don't really support either of these ideas.

Don't get me wrong, as a last ditch, emergency move to get otherwise un-houseable folks off the street, fine, so be it.

But its not a sustainable solution.

As such, I feel about it much the way I feel about Toronto's Shelter System, that it soaks up tons of money that could actually provide people with proper housing instead. (at least full studio-size, as in 500ft2+) apartments.

Toronto Shelters, for instance come in at $250 per night. That's ~$7,500 per month.

For that sum, we could house 2 families in 3brm apartments, and have enough leftover for 1 studio unit; or alternatively, house about ~5 or 6 single people.

While the various tiny homes and trailers are better than a sleeping bag.......they are not only inadequate in their own right; but they really don't work unless you have a place to put them, and hook ups for power and water and sewage.

When you factor the full cost of those in, they aren't particularly cheap or practical. Keep in mind, if we want to address everyone in Toronto currently in the shelter system ~10,000 or roughing it outside on a typical night ~2,500......

We need 12,500 bedrooms and probably about 8,000 units of housing.

In that context, however well intended, I tend to view these schemes as a distraction from the real work.
 
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I'd like to hear @HousingNowTO 's thoughts on the affordable ownership program for six condo units Alexandra Park:

www.thestar.com

A Toronto program is offering new condos to public housing residents, no down payment required. Why is it struggling to find takers?

More than seven months after bids opened, only three households were approved for six available homes.
www.thestar.com www.thestar.com

The Star indicates that the City has been unable to get takers for more than 3 of the 6 units which come with no down payment, and mortgage at 2% interest.
 
Northern Light said:
I'd like to hear @HousingNowTO 's thoughts on the affordable ownership program for six condo units Alexandra Park:

www.thestar.com

A Toronto program is offering new condos to public housing residents, no down payment required. Why is it struggling to find takers?

More than seven months after bids opened, only three households were approved for six available homes.
www.thestar.com www.thestar.com

The Star indicates that the City has been unable to get takers for more than 3 of the 6 units which come with no down payment, and mortgage at 2% interest.
Click to expand...
The jump from Rent-Geared-To-Income (RGI) units in TCH to any kind of "market related" apartment or condo is almost impossible for any household to manage -- because nothing the City can offer is more directly advantageous to a household than the approx. ~$1,300 - $3,000 per month tax-free rent-subsidy (*based on comparable unit-size / location market rents) you get in perpetuity as a TCH RGI renter.

TCHC_RGI_2023_RENTS.PNG


In 2024, that TCH RGI rent is a tax-free benefit equivalent to to somewhere between $15,600 - $36,000 per year, and it will only increase year-over-year as the gap between RGI rent and Market rents in Toronto gets wider - whereas the household annual income will likely DROP as they enter their Senior years.

This TCH "Affordable Ownership" model was something that came out of Adam Vaughan and Joe Cressy's offices when they were on Council -- and the Alexandra Park community was very active and hands-on a dozen or more years ago -
www.thestar.com

Will a mixed-income revamp make or break Alexandra Park?

Alexandra Park is the next Toronto housing project to undergo a massive mixed-income makeover. Will it make — or break — the neighbourhood?
www.thestar.com www.thestar.com

Way back then, the MATH on this TCH "Affordable Ownership" pilot program probably made sense when the units were expected to have a value of $225,000 per condo -- but that likely doesn't make sense now that they are closer to $600,000 per condo.

At this point, they would probably be better to have just had SIX (6) extra units in the TCH RGI building instead of these units on the TRIDEL side of the towers.
 
Council adopted, without amendment's the Rental Housing incentives proposed by the Mayor.

***

Of note, however, there was a supplementary report.

That report had a couple of of interesting things to say......


From the above:

1731525465882.png

1731525498458.png


1731525570138.png


Also of note, the City has established a tracking page for projects approved under this plan:

www.toronto.ca

Rental Housing Supply Program

Interested in building Affordable Rental Homes? Find out how to apply for City Initiatives. The Rental Housing Supply Program (RHSP) supports the creation of a range of new rental homes to advance the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan, including: Rent-geared-to-income (RGI) homes; Affordable...
www.toronto.ca www.toronto.ca

@HousingNowTO
 
Northern Light said:
Council adopted, without amendment's the Rental Housing incentives proposed by the Mayor.

***

Of note, however, there was a supplementary report.

That report had a couple of of interesting things to say......


From the above:

View attachment 611768
View attachment 611770

View attachment 611772

Also of note, the City has established a tracking page for projects approved under this plan:

www.toronto.ca

Rental Housing Supply Program

Interested in building Affordable Rental Homes? Find out how to apply for City Initiatives. The Rental Housing Supply Program (RHSP) supports the creation of a range of new rental homes to advance the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan, including: Rent-geared-to-income (RGI) homes; Affordable...
www.toronto.ca www.toronto.ca

@HousingNowTO
Click to expand...
From the City e-blast today -

We are pleased to share that the City has released the Purpose-built Rental Housing Incentives Call for Applications.

The Call for Applications can be found at: https://www.toronto.ca/community-pe...housing-partners/open-requests-for-proposals/

All questions about this Call for Applications are to be submitted via email to: HousingSecretariatRFP@toronto.ca.

Please note the Purpose-built Rental Housing Call for Application will close on November 29, 2024 at 4 pm.
 
Northern Light said:
Council adopted, without amendment's the Rental Housing incentives proposed by the Mayor.

***

Of note, however, there was a supplementary report.

That report had a couple of of interesting things to say......


From the above:

View attachment 611768
View attachment 611770

View attachment 611772

Also of note, the City has established a tracking page for projects approved under this plan:

www.toronto.ca

Rental Housing Supply Program

Interested in building Affordable Rental Homes? Find out how to apply for City Initiatives. The Rental Housing Supply Program (RHSP) supports the creation of a range of new rental homes to advance the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan, including: Rent-geared-to-income (RGI) homes; Affordable...
www.toronto.ca www.toronto.ca

@HousingNowTO
Click to expand...
Glad to hear it!
 
While not about 'affordable' housing per se, but rather 'rental' housing..........

@AshNavabi 's excellent front page piece on rental housing construction, and the relationship (or not) of same to various tax policy changes deserves some hype, so it gets that here:

urbantoronto.ca

A Break with No Fix? Examining the Impact of Tax Cuts on Rental Construction in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area | UrbanToronto

Notable trends: Initial gains: By late 2023 and early 2024, the proportion of rental units starting construction in Toronto surged, peaking at nearly 50% of total residential construction. This increase underscores the short-term responsiveness of developers to tax incentives. Return to...
urbantoronto.ca urbantoronto.ca

Go read it UT!
 
A report on the status of MURA, The City's program for financing the purchase of existing rental housing stock to preserve it as affordable, is headed to next week's Planning and Housing Ctte.


I've been a big proponent of this program, and here's why:

1737042088902.png


Look at that cost per unit, its about 75% cheaper to deliver than new build housing.

Yet, the program is almost depleted with only 18M remaining for a 2025 version.

That's absurd! Money needs to be shifted into this program which performs much, much better on financial metrics than almost any other City Housing program.

For contrast, based on the City's 2023 cost for shelter beds of $253 per night ($92, 345 per year). This program delivers a permanent affordable housing unit for what we spend on a shelter bed in only 19 months.

@HousingNowTO
 
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Good piece in the Globe and Mail discussing hospitals getting into the housing business.

It provides many examples, but gives the largest space to discussing UHN's efforts at Dunn, but also in the planned development at the Bay Coach Terminal lands.

It notes the twin needs to address homelessness and people who end up too frequently in ERs due to same, but also the impact of unaffordable housing on attracting and retaining hospital employees, particularly lower paid ones such as janitorial, porters, technicians, food staff and so on.

www.theglobeandmail.com

Hospitals getting into the housing business

In the past year, Toronto’s University Health Network has found itself anchoring two novel housing initiatives
www.theglobeandmail.com www.theglobeandmail.com

Of note........

We lean that UHN may not be done with housing, its reviewing its real estate portfolio with an eye to more builds; also Hamilton Health Sciences is looking at following suit.
 
Not a Toronto story.........yet; but Canadian, and quite intriguing.........

Vancouver is getting into ............. the for-profit housing business:

www.theglobeandmail.com

City of Vancouver will become a developer and landlord of for-profit rentals in bid to ease housing crisis

Move is part of a new strategy of acquiring or building rentals and operating them as a way of making money for the city
www.theglobeandmail.com www.theglobeandmail.com

Its moving to be its own builder on at least 5 City-owned sites, the first, a two-tower project at 54s and 40s featuring 1,100 rental units.

It also moved to buy an existing private build that was mid-construction and is now renting that out for rents starting at $2,350 per month for a bachelor.

Regular readers here will know that I'm a fan of the 'Vienna' model where the City acts as its own builder, but uses full rent units within a given building to subsidize below-market rents in the same building.

I like that model because it allows the City to provide affordable housing with minimum subsidy allowing dollars to stretch.

I'm a little less certain over Vancouver's choices here.....but haven't formed a hard opinion. This certainly could/will increase rental housing supply which may have positive effect on affordability.

It could also generate profit/net revenue that could be deployed in service of the housing crisis, but its not clear to me from the piece if the money will be reserved to that objective.
 
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5,000 affordable homes at risk: Ford government rolled back mandates for dozens of Toronto properties on election call eve​

www.thestar.com

5,000 affordable homes at risk: Ford government rolled back mandates for dozens of Toronto properties on election call eve

The Ford government replaced city of Toronto wording stating that developments “will secure” a certain amount of affordable housing before calling the Ontario election.
www.thestar.com www.thestar.com

TORONTO_STAR_EMPLOYMENT_LANDS_202502.png


"...A series of decisions signed on Jan. 27 and published Jan. 28 — the same day PC leader Doug Ford requested a dissolution of the legislature and sparked an early election — replaced city wording stating that developments “will SECURE” a certain amount of affordable housing with new phrasing that says builders will instead be “ENCOURAGED to include” a certain number of affordable homes..."
 
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