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National Housing Strategy
A developer will use the loan to build an affordable rental building.
If we are serious about ending homelessness, we need to institute long-term solutions and to invest in a public health, preventive approach.
The National Housing Strategy can finally help rectify the core problems behind our affordable housing and homelessness crises. But only if we do it right.
Budget 2017 earmarked a whopping $11 billion for housing and homelessness. There's no doubt this will have a big impact. However, these funds must not only build affordable housing, they must align with poverty reduction strategies and mental health and recovery initiatives if we are to truly reduce long-term homelessness.
Budget 2017 proposes to invest more than $11.2 billion over 11 years in a variety of initiatives designed to build, renew and repair Canada's stock of affordable housing, and help ensure that Canadians have affordable housing that meets their needs. But so far it fails to address key market-related issues - again.
Spring has sprung, and while spring season is normally an occasion to celebrate, with days growing longer, weather getting warmer and real estate heading into busy season, everything feels a little different this year. Canada's real estate markets are dealing with myriad of issues.
Given the tenor of hate and division that surrounds us, here's an invitation to focus on something positive, and something achievable; something that will bring benefit to communities across the country, and build better health outcomes for all Canadians.
Prospective homebuyers face a growing list of challenges -- from skyrocketing prices in Vancouver and Toronto, to soft conditions in Alberta, to another round of mortgage rule changes. But there are some good reasons 2017 is still a good year to buy a home in Canada.
Canadians spoke loud and clear. They want a strong, collaborative national housing strategy to facilitate housing for those most in need, address the unique challenges facing indigenous peoples, eliminate homelessness, make housing more affordable and improve data collection, analysis and research.
The recognition of housing as a human right by Minister Duclos' office could be the turning point -- not just for how we view housing, but for poverty and other economic rights violations as well. To see housing as a right looks beyond the physical structure of a shelter to a number of other factors: access to sanitation, location, and access to services or employment, community, security of tenure, and cultural adequacy, as well as other rights such as health, life and dignity.
