The City of Vancouver Considers terminating Rental Housing Incentive Program

The City of Vancouver Considers terminating Rental Housing Incentive Program

  • Real Estate
  • Redevelopment
  • Rental
April 25, 2019

The City of Vancouver Considers terminating Rental Housing Incentive Program.

The City of Vancouver Considers terminating Rental Housing Incentive Program.

What is Rental 100?
 Rental 100 program is the city of Vancouver's creation in 2012 to encourage private developers to build accommodation which is 100% rental. The goal is to create 20,000 new units of market rental housing by 2027. The developer will sign a restrictive covenant with the city that the dwelling cannot be stratified and need to be in the rental market for 60 years.

Developers also receive the following incentive and benefits:

  • Development cost levy (DCL) waiver
  • Parking requirement reductions
  • Relaxation of unit size to 320 square feet (provided the design and location meet the City’s liveability criteria)
  • Additional density beyond what is available under existing zoning (for projects requiring a rezoning)
  • Concurrent processing (for projects requiring a rezoning)

Affordability will be achieved by managing the price of rent. Additional rental housing supply will help to ease the low vacancy rate in Vancouver, which is the driving force behind the house and rental prices increase. The new rental units created by rental 100 programs will provide more option for the renter and create more competition in the rental market.
The City of Vancouver Considers terminating Rental Housing Incentive Program.

The Misunderstanding between Rental 100 and Affordability
Rental 100 has created thousands of rental units in the past 7 years adding plenty of rental supply for those in need. However, there were concerns regarding the effectiveness of the program. The purpose of Rental 100 is to create more rental supply and indirectly helps combat the affordability crisis in Vancouver. As supply increase, we expect the rental price to drop. The city also introduced an additional policy to limit the rent developer can charge.
The City of Vancouver Considers terminating Rental Housing Incentive Program.

However, Rental 100 is under the danger of being terminated due to its effectiveness to combat affordability, which is not the main purpose of this policy. The main purpose is to increase the rental market supply to offer more rental options to choose from. There are criticisms on how the developer is charging excessively on rental prices. For example, increasing rent after the first tenant and setting the rental price to maximum. The reasons for such criticism are reasonable, but they did not factor in the change in the market. When population increases are faster than housing supply increases, the market price will increase. The overall cost of living is also increasing, which leads to maintenance and management fee of the property to increase as well.
 The City of Vancouver Considers terminating Rental Housing Incentive Program.

The Verdict
Rental 100 has been the reason why the majority of rental housing is built. As of now, there is no replacement of rental policy in place. We definitely should not stop the Rental 100 program. Instead, we need to re-evaluate the situation and improve on what we currently have. Removing the policy now will not help with the current market situation and make it worse. We need Rental 100 to continue to build rental housing supply or the price will increase further rapidly.

Yoyoe Lu

Founder and managing principal
yoyoe@claridgeadvisors.com

Yoyoe is the founder and managing principal of Claridge. She was ranked one of Vancouver’s top real estate agents. Currently, Yoyoe is our strategic mind leading the team to success. Her affiliation with industry professionals put her ahead of our competitors. Yoyoe is also part of the Rotary Club of West Vancouver, Canadian Homebuilders Association, Urban Land Institute and Urban Development Institute.

Ashley Osborn

Development Site and Investment Specialist
ashley@claridgeadvisors.com

Ashely is our lead land and investment advisor. He has been consistently featured in the annual top 100 real estate deals of British Columbia ranking. With over $15 billion worth of domestic and international real estate investments under his belt, Ashley is one of the top agents in the province. His 20 years of real estate and financial experience make him a master in negotiation and acquisition.

Patricia Wong Chong

Investment and Leasing Specialist
patricia@claridgeadvisors.com

Patricia is our investment and retail leasing advisor. Her experience in brokerage and market research analysis has helped her comprise over $550 million in commercial real estate transactions. Patricia is responsible, detail-oriented, and professional. Her strong work ethic and positive attitude have led her to surpass all her competitors.

Schumann Li

Land Assembly & Residential Specialist
schumann@claridgeadvisors.com

Schumann is a top-producing realtor in the Lower Mainland with more than 30 years’ experience. Over the years, Schumann hasn’t just garnered awards, but the trust of countless customers. Her clients continually refer to her outstanding professionalism, work ethic and poise.

Wendy Kaip

Sales Associate
wendy@claridgeadvisors.com

Whether it’s decoding city policies, strategizing relocation plans, home sellers looking for a trustworthy advisor to unlock their property’s maximum potential- Wendy is here to help every step along the way.

Prior to real estate, Wendy spent over a decade in the mining industry with her attention to detail, keen negotiation skills, extensive network and strong reputation for getting the deal done, bringing endless value to her current real estate clients.

Whether you are thinking about selling to a developer, or have more questions about commercial real estate, Wendy invites you to connect, to see how she can utilize her expertise and team to help create value and maximize your real estate goals.

Simon Chan

Managing Broker
simon@claridgeadvisors.com

Simon is the managing broker of Claridge Real Estate Advisors Inc. His expertise has helped our agents resolve many difficulties. Not only is Simon knowledgeable with real estate legislation, but he is also very detail orientated. With Simon on our team, our agents are confident to conduct businesses and will always get the support they need to ensure they’re not walking on dirty water.

Frank Zhou

Analyst
frank@claridgeadvisors.com

As the analyst of the company, my key job is to help brokers to find marketable clients and locate feasible development sites by collecting and analyzing up-to-date market transaction data and conducting target market and property-level research. Meanwhile, I am also in charge of maintaining the company’s property database to ensure accuracy and comprehensiveness and continuously upgrading the level of knowledge by staying up to date with hot topics, and market trends, and incorporating findings into everyday work. Before joining the company, I worked for CR Group as a real estate investment manager, focusing on capital raising, equity and debt financing, acquisition and renovation. I hold 2 master’s degrees, one in Housing Management and the other in Economics.

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