The rhythm of housing construction begins in Nueva Scotia needs more than double during the next decade to restore affordability to pre-pandemic levels, according to a recent report by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
The Canada Housing Agency estimates that the current housing rate of the province begins is approximately 5,400 per year. According to the report, Nueva Scotia must average more than 12,500 annual beginnings between 2025 and 2035.
“Need [supply for] Rental, we need ownership of a home, we need everything in all areas, “said the deputy director of CMHC Ald Ab Iorwerth.
He said it will be a challenge to reach the necessary housing. In recent years, people in the construction industry have reported labor shortage They are having an impact on the projects.
“It’s a stretch objective, but that’s why we need everyone [governments and the private sector] To work together on this, “said Ab Iorwerth.
He said that governments must make development processes more efficient, while builders and developers must find ways to improve productivity through approaches such as prefabricated manufacturing.
The latest CMHC update on the housing supply gaps analyzes what would be needed to return housing prices not to be greater than 30 percent of the average income of gross or no more than 2019 levels in less affordable regions.
He report Regional breakdowns show that Ontario and Nueva Scotia have the most significant supply gaps in the province, while Montreal faces the largest gap of any important city.
The affordable housing researcher Catherine Leviten-Reid said that the type of housing we build in future issues and is not something addressed in the report.
Some experts, including Leviten-ReidI have said More homes that are not market Like the ownership of governments or non -profit organizations, it is needed to guarantee a more affordable housing system.
“Those suppliers do not seek profits and, therefore, they will not collect the same type of high rents as our developers of profit for profit,” said Leviten-Reid, an associated professor at the University of Cape Breton.
“Why not address the problem of affordability by increasing the supply specifically in those sectors that are not market?”
Leviten-Reid added that regulations should also be considered, as vacancies control To prevent affordable apartments from being pushed to much higher market rentals when the new tenants move.
Ab Iorwerth agrees that more support is needed for low -income homes, and added that “middle -class Canadians also feel the pinch and more housing is needed to recover them … Back to affordability.”
If new Scotland can increase housing construction, the CMHC estimates that housing prices could fall from an average of approximately $ 511,000 to less than $ 406,000 by the end of 2035.
The CMHC has changed its affordable objective by making projections on the supply gaps.
“Restoring affordability to the levels seen for the last time two decades ago is not realistic, especially after the increase in prices after pandemic,” the report said.
He points out that the new threshold to restore affordability to the levels prior to the pandemic is not an official objective of the government, but illustrates the scale of the challenge of making the house affordable.
