Provincial Policy Updates
The Province’s 2023 housing plan, Homes for People, is an ambitious plan with wide-ranging elements that will have significant implications for local governments across B.C. Initiatives include: actions to promote densification and expedite planning approvals; a $500 million fund to help organizations buy aging rental buildings to keep them available as affordable rentals; and new actions to close encampments and better support people currently sheltering in encampments to access housing. UBCM previously prepared a detailed analysis of this plan. Members may contact Josh van Loon, Senior Policy Analyst, with questions or comments regarding the roll-out of Homes for People.
Updates and analyses on specific elements of the plan will be posted here:
- Housing Supply Act: New legislation would allow Province to set municipal housing targets
Homes for People was preceded in 2018 by the Homes for B.C. plan, which proposed measures to stabilize housing prices, crack down on tax fraud, build affordable housing and improve security for renters, and built on several elements of UBCM’s 2018 housing strategy.
Federal Policy Updates
The Federal Government unveiled its National Housing Strategy in 2017. The strategy is primarily geared towards low-income households, and includes a National Housing Co-Investment Fund, a new rental benefit, community housing initiatives, and an expanded homelessness program. The 10-year plan committed $82 billion towards a stated goals of cutting chronic homelessness in half, remove 530,000 families from housing need, and investing in the construction of up to 160,000 new homes.
UBCM submissions related to the strategy:
Recent Federal Announcements and Initiatives:
- CMHC Funding Programs
- Federal Government announces $20 billion in new financing for rental housing construction
- Enhanced GST Rental Rebate to support rental housing