The goal of this initiative is to provide grants to support private investment in housing and infrastructure to incentivize new and affordable housing.

Objectives include:

• increasing the availability of affordable housing
• offsetting development costs associated with new housing
• incentivizing the Town’s existing density bonus policy for missing middle housing

The definition of "affordability" can be cause for confusion for many. So let's take a look at what we mean when we talk about affordable housing.

Many people think “affordable housing” only means government-funded rental homes. But it actually includes homes provided by private companies or individuals, the government, and non-profit groups.

Affordable is not one-size-fits-all - what is affordable for one household might not be affordable for another. The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) defines affordable housing as housing that costs no more than 30% of a household's before-tax income.

For Example

If my household consists of myself, my partner and our child, and I bring home $1,600 per month and my partner brings home $2,400 per month (before tax) then our household income is $4,000 per month. Our housing would be considered affordable if we pay $1,200 per month or less ($4,000 x 0.3).

If my household only consists of me and I bring home $2,500 per month, then what is deemed affordable is considerably less - ($2,500 x 0.3) coming in at $750 or less.