Making tenants’ voices central to housing and climate crisis
Decarbonization needs to be linked to housing justice. All levels of government should ensure that funding for retrofits include affordability and anti-eviction pacts; energy efficiency and mechanical cooling measures; and cover all rental types.
National Housing Council’s missed opportunity
The Council decided not to hold financialized landlords accountable, resorting to a well-intentioned, but misguided comparison to the health-care system.
National housing review panel says housing, like health care, should be universal
A review panel studying the financialization of rental housing is calling for national consensus protections for renters, and more funding for non-market housing to match other OECD countries
The housing crisis and the municipal heritage of Canadian nationalism
There’s a paradoxical relation between continental geography and municipal culture in defining Canada: the capacity for being a multi-national federation is linked to a national culture rooted in municipal loyalties.
Federal government ‘ghosted’ civil society on REIT tax treatment decision: housing advocates
The REIT structure is a ‘democratization of real estate investment,’ not a tax loophole, says CAPREIT’s Larry Greer.
Political disconnect leaving Liberals far behind
It’s not at all clear that the Trudeau Liberals are playing the same game as their opponents.
Indigenous-led housing solutions need federal funding to fill the gap
Indigenous groups are poised for massive scale-up in economic participation, education, jobs, and better housing outcomes for Indigenous Peoples.
Momentum is building for new homeownership solutions in Canada
People locked out of homeownership are desperate for innovative solutions.
Liberal housing strategy will need ‘both carrots and sticks’ to break through affordable housing stalemate: observers
The Liberals should abandon the idea of public lands as a revenue resource and go-all in on affordability, says CHRA’s Ray Sullivan.
Tenants’ advocates warn of landlords ‘double dipping’ into green retrofit fund without greater transparency or strings attached
A recent survey by ACORN Canada found more than half of 100+ tenants in Alberta-based Avenue Living’s properties saw rent increases of $300 to $600 in the past two years. The organization entered into a financing agreement with the Canada Infrastructure Bank for energy-efficient retrofits in June 2022.
