August 4th, 2021

Horwath outlines housing platform that helps people buy a home that fits their family

PEEL — With hundreds of thousands of people in Peel living in cramped and crowded homes, Andrea Horwath has released a plan to help people afford the home their family needs.

“With the NDP’s Homes You Can Afford plan, it’s going to be easier for people to afford a place that fits their family,” said Horwath. “Too many folks in Peel are living in tight conditions. The NDP has a plan that offers a concrete solution for families that are growing, looking for a multi-generational home, or planning a rental or a granny suite. And it gives the next generation hope that the dream of home ownership is achievable for them.

“Our plan will help you afford the life you’re working hard for — so that you can have a renter in the basement, or a home large enough to accommodate a growing family and multi-generational household.”

In Peel, one in five renter households are living in overcrowded conditions according to the Canadian Rental Housing Index. On top of that, countless Peel families would like a home that accommodates a granny suite, or has an income suite to help with the mortgage.

But according to the MLS Home Price Index, since 2015, the price of a single family home in the GTA has soared by more than 50 per cent.

Horwath and the NDP’s comprehensive platform for housing includes down payment help for first-time homeowners. The Homes in Ontario Program would give home buyers a equity loan of up to 10 per cent of the purchase price of their first home to help cover the cost of the down payment. That doesn’t need to be repaid until the owner chooses to, sells or moves. A new Residents’ Rights Act would help people bring in extra money to pay their mortgage by making it inexpensive and safe to convert basements, garages or floors into affordable rentals.

Helping people create basement units and granny flats will mean more homes for renters, and that’s on top of the 69,000 new affordable homes the NDP is planning to build. Homes You Can Afford will also better protect tenants from poor living conditions, and help 311,000 households pay their rent.

“Finding a good home you can afford has been getting harder for decades,” said NDP Deupty Leader Sara Singh (Brampton Centre). “Doug Ford has let corporations and billionaires snatch up properties, leaving everyone else to compete over what’s left. And Steven Del Duca isn’t the answer — he had 15 years in power, and his government drove housing prices through the roof, leaving new and young buyers in the dust. People deserve better – and with this plan, there’s so much more hope.”

Video:

https://www.facebook.com/AndreaHorwathONDP/videos/356545419482227

Background

  • An Ontario NDP government will create a new Residents’ Rights Act to make it easier for homeowners to convert an unused garage, basement or floor of their home into an affordable rental home.
  • Under the NDP’s Homes in Ontario Program (HOP), first-time home buyers with household incomes under $200,000 would be able to access home equity loans of up to 10 per cent to help with their down payment. Home owners would then have the flexibility to buy back the government’s share or repay the loan only if and when they move and sell their home.
  • The NDP will create a revenue-neutral fund to finance repayable loans as a part of the HOP. That fund will be self-sustaining. Gains in the fund over time will be used to maintain the fund.
  • Implementing the entire Homes You Can Afford plan will take a capital investment of $90 million to extend the life of 260,000 affordable homes and an average annual investment of $340 million for 10 years to build 69,000 new affordable homes.
  • The total additional annual projected revenue is $300 million, all from speculation, non-resident vacancy, taxes on pre-construction condo flipping and licensing short-term rentals — not a dime will come from everyday families who rent or buy in Ontario.
  • An NDP government would fund an operating investment of $300 million. That includes $240 million to fund rent subsidies for 311,000 households, $10 million for a co-op seed fund and $50 million to deliver 30,000 supportive housing spaces.