What experts say Nova Scotia can do to preserve our stock of affordable rental housing
Province rapidly losing some of its most affordable apartments
A recent CBC News analysis found that Nova Scotia is rapidly losing some of its most affordable apartments, but housing experts say there are ways to prevent that.
One approach is to remove existing apartments with affordable rents from the influence of market forces. For example, a non-profit group could buy a building that was previously owned by a for-profit company.
“That’s really the only way to ensure that longer-term affordability … so that there’s no chance of [rents] just continuing to rise and rise,” said Trish McCourt, the executive director of the association representing non-profit housing providers.
Research has shown that non-market housing providers like non-profits and co-ops keep their rents lower over time, said affordable housing researcher Catherine Leviten-Reid.
The province does have a Community Housing Acquisition Program, which provides loans of up to $10 million for non-market housing operators to buy existing multi-unit residential properties. …[Continue Reading]