On Monday, the Ontario NDP announced the housing policy on which it will campaign in 2022. The platform calls for the same goals as the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, Ontario Region, and the Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association, outlined above. The NDP’s costing is lower, however.
- building 69,000 new units of affordable housing over 10 years is estimated to cost an average annual $340 million, about half the estimate above;
- building 30,000 units of supportive housing, at $50 million a year;
- renovations to 260,000 affordable units at $90 million a year
- and financial support for 311,000 tenants at $240 million a year.
The NDP also proposes, among a number of other measures, rent control for all units; an end to vacancy decontrol (which allows a landlord to raise rent by any amount when a unit is vacated); mandating universal design building codes (for full accessibility); a crackdown on renovictions; and down-payment help for first-time home buyers. It predicts taxes on speculation, non-resident vacancy, pre-construction condo flipping and licensing of short-term rentals will yield $300 million in annual revenue. The platform can be found at https://mcusercontent.com/353019c4e982ae7eb8ea53150/files/07320c7f-4c42-4ed3-a308-5f155b8f7c7f/Homes_You_Can_Afford_EN.pdf
The Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation on Wednesday issued an analysis of the NDP plan. It praised the plan, including the fact that it is built on a human rights approach to housing, its focus on the needs of many marginalized communities, and its plan to tackle the financialization of housing—treating housing as a market commodity rather than a social good. Its only criticism was of things left out. CERA says the plan could be improved by adding increased funding for Legal Aid for tenants and for non-profits and housing advocacy groups that help tenants deal with eviction, discrimination and enforcing their rights; and by pledging to repeal Bill 184, which it says removes procedural rights for tenants. Subject to those omissions, CERA says the plan is “a substantive step forward in addressing the significant housing needs of low income and vulnerable Ontarians” that have become worse during the pandemic. https://www.equalityrights.org/cera-blog/ontario-ndp-housing-plan-advances-right-to-housing