Vital Signs Article #3

AFFORDABLE HOUSING DIFFICULT TO FIND
Published Monday August 25th, 2008
Appeared on Page A1
By Shawn Berry

Editor's note: This is the third in a weekly series that will focus on the Fredericton Community Foundation's first Vital Signs report to be released in October.

Finding an affordable place to call home shouldn't be a difficult thing to do. But at any given time, there are hundreds of people on a waiting list who are looking for affordable housing in the Fredericton area. Many are having trouble making ends meet. Living expenses often take up the biggest chunk of their budget. "As the cost of living goes up for low-income earners, so are power rates and the cost of oil and gas. You have to balance where the money goes," said Cindy Sheppard, executive director of the Fredericton Community Foundation.

Vacancy rates are one of 11 key indicators the Fredericton Community Foundation is looking at as it prepares to release the community's first Vital Signs report. The situation is a contradiction of sorts for a community that boasts the highest apartment vacancy rates among New Brunswick's three largest cities. In October 2007, Fredericton posted a vacancy rate of 6.5 per cent. But vacancy rates weren't the only high number in Fredericton. The city also had the highest rents.

Figures released by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. in December 2007 showed that for every category of apartment, the city had the highest average monthly rent anywhere in the province. Average costs for every apartment type in the city were also highest in New Brunswick: $546 for a bachelor, $586 for a one bedroom, $701 for a two bedroom and $888 for a three bedroom.

The City of Fredericton recently identified half a dozen properties it's willing to part with at a reduced price, provided the buyer builds an eight-unit apartment that includes two low-income units. So far, only one property has been sold under the program. Coun. Mike O'Brien, a proponent of increased access to affordable housing in Fredericton, said church and non-profit sectors are doing a good job, but private involvement is necessary to help address the situation. "The good news is developers are so busy with the boom that's been going on here that they're all busy building apartments they can rent for $1,000. The bad side is they don't have time, to sit back and look at the potential of this market."

Almost 400 people were on a waiting list for affordable housing in Fredericton, Oromocto, New Maryland and surrounding areas last fall. The price of homes in the Fredericton area is on the rise as well. The average price paid for a home resold in the area in 2007 was $141,117, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association. That's up from $138,094 in 2006, $105,245 in 2002 and $93,725 in 1998.

For some, even an apartment is out of reach. "The challenge for our clients is not finding an apartment. It's being able to even afford a room in a rooming house," said Brian Duplessis, executive director of Fredericton Emergency Shelters Inc.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. doesn't keep statistics on rooming houses, which usually consist of rooms where residents don't have their own bathrooms or kitchens. "The cheapest room in Fredericton is in excess of $300 a month," Duplessis said. That may sound OK to some, he said, but people have to realize income assistance for a single, employable person is $285 a month. Even a person with a certified disability who is getting $521 a month is in a bind, he said. "After they paid $300-plus for their room, they have to live on $200 for the rest of the month."

It's not unusual for the emergency shelters to have residents living there, paying $100 in rent so they can save up to get a room of their own, Duplessis said. Once they do, he said, it isn't easy to keep the room.
"Quite often we see people who get a room for a month or two, but then they can't afford it because some other expenses come up." It could be anything from the cost of medicine, the cost of smoking habits or the desire to help a friend. "Among the people I know here, there's an amazing kindness to help others in a similar situation." "They can't make their own expenses then," he said. It points to a need for better services and more funding to help those in need of shelter, he said.