After months of consultations, the Government
of Ontario released its Long-Term Affordable Housing Strategy in December 2010. Ontario’s Long Term Affordable Housing Strategy is designed
to improve access to affordable housing. Unfortunately, the strategy does not include a homeownership component, something that OREA strongly recommended during consultations.
Instead, the strategy reforms the province’s
housing system by:
• Consolidating Ontario’s housing and home-
lessness programs to give municipalities the
flexibility to use funding to address local
needs.
• Simplifying the rent-geared-to-income calculation process so that most tenants would only
declare their income once a year.
• Expanding affordable housing options by requiring municipalities to set policies that would
allow second units in new and existing developments.
• Clarifying the roles and responsibilities of municipalities and the province to create stronger
partnerships and greater accountability.
While the strategy improves the province’s approach to social housing, it does not include any
component to help Ontarians achieve their homeownership dreams.
OREA wrote the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing noting the association’s disappointment with the lack of support for homeownership in the new housing strategy. Specifically, OREA’s letter noted that homeownership builds strong stable communities and helps drive the provincial economy through consumer spending and construction.