The housing crisis is a phenomenon that is now recognized by all and is growing in importance in Canada and elsewhere in the world. According to a recent report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), there would be a shortage of nearly 3.5 million housing units to emerge from the crisis by 2030. At the current rate of construction, it appears unlikely that we will let’s reach this target. What if we took advantage of this observation of predictable failure to build differently?
I am not talking here about construction techniques – although some need to be reviewed and corrected – but rather about what underlies residential construction: land. The current crisis would have anchored its foundations in the privatization of this land. This is the hypothesis of several governments around the world which have put in place laws and mechanisms allowing the dismemberment of land and housing. In other words, the land would belong to a non-profit organization mandated by the State which would “rent” this land for a term of 99 years to a household wishing to build a home there which they would become the owner of.
In addition to reducing the cost of ownership, this mechanism limits the resale value, as the household does not fully own its home without the land. This is how in France, the ALUR law of 2014 profoundly transformed the relationship with property by creating solidarity land organizations in the six corners of France.
These organizations have the mandate to improve access to property through the dissociation between land and buildings. Variations of this model can be found all over the world, whether in Belgium, the United States or England. In Canada, there are still very few initiatives of this type, with several programs leading to rental housing and not to ownership.
Things may be about to change, as in 2020 CMHC issued a call for projects under its Community Land Trust program. Around ten inspiring projects were supported, the majority of which are located in major Canadian cities (Downtown Eastside in Vancouver, Parkdale in Toronto, Urban Village in Montreal).
Certain rural projects have also received support from the state company, including one in Dunham, a small municipality of 3,000 inhabitants located in Estrie, where Foncier solidaire Brome-Missisquoi has started a first construction site. Foncier solidaire has taken on a double challenge, that of separating land from housing while offering a non-profit general entrepreneurship service in new residential construction, a first in Quebec. The foundations were poured in the last few days, which will allow a new construction model to emerge in Quebec.
Hoping that it will make it to the National Assembly, where certain ministers are actively seeking solutions. As always, this model will not eradicate the housing crisis, but if it changed just a little our relationship with housing and the way we do construction in Quebec, that would already be grandiose.