Low-income renters shut out of Belleville housing in 2022: CMHC

Breadcrumb Trail Links News A new study by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CHMC) reports that the availability of affordable rental housing in Belleville and the low-income census area was less than 1 percent last year. POSTMEDIA FILE Content of the article

Adding to the local housing crisis, the Belleville area, which earned less than $40,000 in 2020, had virtually no affordable rental units for low-income renters, according to a new rental report from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC ).

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In its January market study, CMHC said affordable rental housing availability in the Belleville area last year was less than 1 percent for low-income earners, even though total rental housing across all segments grew to 2.4 percent from 1.7 percent in 2021 is 2022 in the entire census area.

“The vacancy rate rose as demand fell faster than supply. Affordability remains an issue,” said Olga Golozub, a senior analyst, in the report.

The Belleville Census metropolitan area includes Quinte West, Stirling-Rawdon, Tyendinaga and Deseronto.

“We estimate that less than 28 percent of CMA’s rental inventory would be affordable for renter households in the top 40 percent of the income distribution (earnings below $40,000 per year). A monthly rent of less than $1,000 would be affordable for this group,” the authors said. “However, the vacancy rate in this rental price class was well below average at 0.8 percent.”

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Affordable housing availability is increasing for households earning between $40,000 and $59,000 per year.

The average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in the area was $1,295 per month, according to CMHC results.

“The vacancy rate for affordable units is around 2.7 percent. Average rents continued to rise for new leases.”

The turnover of newly vacant properties in 2022 has caused asking rents to increase by an average of 15.6 percent, the report says.

Last year’s recorded vacancy rate of 2.4 percent was still below the “region’s 10-year average of 3.3 percent, prolonging relatively tight rental market conditions.”

The report’s authors noted that some of the improved job vacancy picture may be due in part to “less demand from young tenants” who did not have an improved job market, which added 10,000 new jobs in the census area from October 2021 to October 2022.

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The report found: “The pace of recovery has not been consistent across sectors and demographics. The employment level for young people aged 15 to 24 fell by almost half in October 2022 compared to the previous year. Some businesses in retail, hospitality and foodservice have been hardest hit by the pandemic.”

“As a result, some young people probably left the region to look for work elsewhere. Others with scarce job opportunities and limited opportunities to enter the rental market stayed with their parents, relieving pressure on rental demand,” the authors wrote.

Vacancy rates improved, although some Belleville-area property owners withdrew their properties from the rental market.

“In 2022, rental units were taken off the market both temporarily and permanently. The temporary removal of rental units occurred for a variety of reasons including renovations and owner occupancy. Permanent moves include demolitions and conversions to other uses.”

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In a separate report presented to Hastings Council on Thursday, CAO Jim Pine told councilors there are 3,076 people on the county’s council housing waitlist, a number that is up 27 percent since 2020.

Citing a plan by the Eastern Ontario Wardens Caucus to build 7,000 new lower-income rental units in eastern Ontario at a cost of $3.1 billion, Pine said the plan calls for 1,854 of the units to be built at a cost of $813 million would be built in Hastings County, Lennox & Addington County, and Prince Edward County.

Calls for proposals are expected to be issued in late 2024 to begin construction of the housing units, Pine said after consulting with colleagues at the federal and provincial levels.

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