Affordable Housing

“I often have people come up to us and say, I love what you’re doing, can I give you a few thousand out of my RRSPs to invest,” says Ray Sullivan, Executive Director of the Ottawa Community Land Trust (OCLT). The problem for most non-profit affordable housing organizations, he says, is that they don’t currently have a pathway to allow their supporters to do this. We sat down with Ray, and Ottawa Community Land Trust Board Members, Lisa Ker and Glenn Grignonn to explore how Community Bonds might create a new avenue to engage their community while also unlocking much needed capital.

The Ottawa Community Land Trust was established in 2021 with the mission to preserve, maintain and support the creation of diverse and affordable housing in the Ottawa region. Their business model is straightforward – acquire properties that have existing affordable market rents, remove them from the private market, protect existing tenants, and then lease the properties out to local non-profits and co-operatives to manage.

ACORN Canada’s report on the housing crisis in Ottawa is dire. Market rents rose by 26% between 2005 and 2015, while median income only increased by 4%, and supply is not nearly high enough to meet demand. To add to the difficulties, the vast majority of affordable housing providers in Ottawa, and Ontario at large are small housing providers, operating less than a hundred units, meaning it is very difficult for them to achieve economies of scale and compete with the private market. “Of the roughly 750 members of the Ontario Non-profit Housing Association, 700 of them operate less than 100 units of housing,” shares Glenn. 

OCLT is particularly interested in acquiring small to mid-sized apartment buildings. “If they were bought by a commercial investment group, they would solely be interested in their return on investment and aggressively try to turn those units over and raise rents to increase the cash flow from the property,” says Ray. 

Most of the properties they are looking at will be eligible for traditional debt financing for 60% to 70% of the total property value, and OCLT is currently collaborating with the Ottawa Community Foundation to develop impact investment tools to cover the remaining gap. “If we were to rely on government sources, it would take over a year to secure the funds, and we would lose the properties,” says Ray, “we need to be able to mobilize quickly.” 

Ray, Lisa and Glenn all share the opinion that these are not “fundraisable” projects. “People who want to make significant contributions and gifts to organizations and causes get excited about being part of a construction project where you can generate a lot of buzz,” says Lisa, speaking from years of experience leading fundraising initiatives. “It seems that acquisition of existing affordable housing doesn’t have quite the same appeal. This is a big problem because every year, Canada is losing 64,000 units of affordable housing – and 20,000 are in Ontario alone. That means for every one unit built, four are lost. 

Ray shares that he would like to see the impact investment capital developed with the Ottawa Community Foundation become a revolving fund to help them acquire multiple buildings and protect as many units as possible. After acquiring the building, OCLT would repay the initial impact investors with funds raised by issuing Community Bonds. The idea is beneficial in a number of ways, first being that the initial capital would then be available for future acquisitions, and second, it would reduce the risk to community investors because the acquisition would already be complete. “These buildings are already rented out and have a consistent revenue stream, so we feel confident,” says Ray. 

The team also sees the potential to use community bond funds for renovations on the buildings. “There is boundless potential for improvements in energy efficiency in affordable housing,” says Lisa. The team agrees this is an area that really needs more attention, but expertise is scarce. “I think there’s a lack of capacity in the sector,” says Glenn, referring to both energy efficiency retrofits and Community Bonds, “and when people don’t understand it, they don’t want to do it.”

Lisa Ker was formerly the Executive Director of Ottawa Salus, a supportive housing provider. “We never sufficiently ventured into the world of social finance,” she shares, “we didn’t have the tools, resources and education to understand how to mobilize that type of capital.” 

“Like many things in the sector, once you get the momentum going, then people want to get on board,” says Glenn. The team seems excited to plough the way in terms of Community Investment. 

We wrap up the session with everyone being excited about the potential of Community Bonds. “The way you have brought this down to the community level and made it accessible to smaller and medium-sized housing providers – well- that’s just pretty cool,” says Ray. 

About this Blog Series

In October 2021, Tapestry was selected to take part in a Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) program called the Housing Supply Challenge. This innovative competition encourages residents, interested parties, and experts from across the country to propose creative solutions to housing. The goal: to help meet Canada’s pressing need for safe and affordable homes by breaking down barriers to the creation of new supply.

Tapestry participated in Round 2 of the program, Getting Started, which seeks to find solutions to pre-development challenges, such as community resistance and obtaining financing. The program granted incubation funding to the 29 organizations selected to allow them to further develop and test their solution proposals.

Through six months of research and consultation, we had the opportunity to speak with over 40 interested parties in the affordable housing sector, from housing providers, to development consultants, to funders and lenders. Each and every individual and organization consulted helped to co-design our solution proposal.

The “Financing Affordable Housing with the Power of Community” blog series shares the lessons learnt and stories heard from some of the amazing organizations that we have partnered with.

Propolis is a non-profit co-operative based in Kamloops, B.C. that is creating a community of environmentally conscious individuals, brought together by a shared vision of affordable and sustainable housing.

We had the pleasure of meeting Lindsay Harris, the co-founder and president of the Propolis Cooperative Housing Society, and learning more about their ambitions for the co-ops’ first project. Lindsay, who works with Kamloops Food Policy Council, has long had a focus on community economic development. “I have always taken a systems approach to food insecurity, and for me, that also encompasses housing,” she shares. 

Propolis has partnered with local Kamloops resident, Miles Pruden, who owns a sustainable real estate development company, to bring the project to life. Miles’ company, Nexbuild Construction, built what has been dubbed as Kamloops’ most sustainable multi-family home (which can be viewed below). With Miles’ expertise, the co-op hopes to construct housing that is not only better for the environment but also reduces ongoing energy and maintenance expenses for tenants. 

Lindsay got in touch with Tapestry Community Capital because she sees Community Bonds as a flexible tool that could work in tandem with financing that they are hoping to secure from the Canadian Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CMHC). Over the last year, Lindsay has conducted her own research on the community financing landscape in British Columbia, making use of a BC-based toolkit for starting a community investment cooperative. “I wear a lot of hats and have many projects on the go, and I decided I ultimately didn’t have the capacity to also start up a community investment co-operative, and that’s why I was so excited to learn that Tapestry already has the needed infrastructure in place to raise community investment.”

“One of the things that has become very evident from our conversations with our network and with the community is that there are a number of people that are very interested in substantively supporting this work but we need a platform for them to be able to invest,” Lindsay shares. Lindsay came prepared with a list of questions about Community Bonds, all of which are very familiar to the Tapestry Team. 

Are we better to have a smaller group of high-net-worth investors, or a wider group of community members contributing smaller investments?

This is a common question, and the simple answer is – it depends. Community bonds offer an incredible pathway to engage your community and create lasting relationships. On the flip side, we understand that organizations need capital to bring their projects to life. “We think there can be a happy medium and that’s why we often design a Community Bond campaign with multiple investment options,” shares Ryan Collins-Swartz, Tapestry’s Co-Executive Director.  “For example, there may be one bond that offers a lower entry point and perhaps a shorter duration, and this would allow for more widespread engagement, and then another that might have a higher entry point, longer duration and slightly higher interest rate that is better suited to higher net worth individuals.”

Is it possible for institutions to invest in Community Bonds, such as foundations?

“Definitely!” shares Ryan. “We see huge interest from foundations because many have earmarked specific funds for impact investment, and they are always on the lookout for investable projects with social and environmental impact. We have also seen companies, both big and small, being very interested in investing.”

How are interest rates set?

This is a key step in the Tapestry process. We want to make sure that Community Bond issuers are going to the market with an investment opportunity that fits their financial needs, but also an offering that is exciting and attractive to their community. “It’s a multi-step process, but financial modelling of an organization’s financial capacity and projects, along with community consultations, is really key,” shares Ryan. 

Can community bonds offer patient capital?

“The beautiful thing about Community Bonds is that they put the control in the hands of the issuer. If you wanted to issue a bond with a 15-year term, we could certainly explore your community’s appetite to make a longer-term investment,” says Ryan. 

Lindsay shared that prior to meeting Tapestry they had a perception that raising community investment was a complex process, and they had felt fearful to take it on alone. “Kamloops is an incredibly community-minded place, and I have no doubt that there would be widespread support and involvement in a campaign like this.”

The Co-op is currently looking at properties for their first project and are advocating to the City of Kamloops to sell a piece of city-owned property. Lindsay shares that this has been a slow process, but that moving on private properties comes with its own set of challenges. “We are definitely facing hurdles in terms of being able to move quickly on a property – we are hoping Community Bonds can be part of the solution.”

In the Spring of 2021, Mainstay Housing and Houselink Community Homes merged to form Houselink & Mainstay. Together this new organization is the largest supportive housing and non-profit housing provider in Canada. They have a portfolio of about 60 buildings across the City of Toronto, and manage another 300 units through partnerships with private landlords. They also provide support services, beyond housing, to more than 900 individuals.

“This merger really made sense for a number of reasons,” explains Gautam Mukherjee, Houselink & Mainstay Executive Director, “for one, it meant that we could leverage a larger balance sheet to fund new developments.” The organization’s strategic plan has a strong focus on accessibility and scale with the development of purpose built, mixed-income housing. 

“About half our portfolio are rooming houses, with people sharing bathrooms and kitchens, and we know that for some populations of people receiving our support services, it’s just not the right housing setting,” says Gautam. Part of the organization’s strategy is to raise capital through the sale of these rooming houses, in order to fund new builds that better fit their clients needs.

“We are actively in the land market, and had an offer signed back recently – I think this could be a great demonstration project for community investment,” says Gautam. He explains that underwriting has become very challenging in recent months, with interest rates and building costs up. “What originally looked like $6.5 million needed in owner equity could now be upwards of $20 million and we will have a gap to fill,” he explains. 

The organization recently incorporated a non-profit subsidiary to take on the development on behalf of Houselink & Mainstay. This subsidiary has a clear mandate for the development of mixed income housing. The parent organization will then deploy rent supplements to ensure that a percentage of the units are supportive, and provide support services to tenants. 

The conversation shifts away from Houselink & Mainstay for a moment as Gautam gives the Tapestry team a quick 101 on the affordable housing policy framework in Ontario. He explains that the model has shifted over the years away from supportive housing grant funding to the provision of rent supplements. In the case of the Ontario Ministry of Health, they are providing rent subsidies directly to community agencies, who then decide how to use them. “In some cases an agency will lease one unit, or a few units, and in others they might lease an entire building.” 

“Essentially, we are a conduit for providing equity, in the form of rent subsidies,” explains Gautam, “and most of these subsidies end up in the hands of private landlords – so we are really just transferring equity to them.”

When Houselink & Mainstay sell their rooming houses their operating funding will convert to rent supplements, which they will be allowed to transfer to other properties.  “These rent subsidies cover 100% of average market rent (AMR) and we intend to redeploy them into our own newly built units.” 

Gautam is of the opinion that things can only get better from here. “We haven’t seen indications of increasing grant amounts to offset rate increases, or make stress tests easier. And there is no provincial participation, so that can only improve.” Gautam believes we may also see the City of Toronto wave development charges for non-profit projects where a certain proportion of units are affordable. 

“I think the land economics are the same for everybody – private or non-profit,” says Gautam, “and if we want to compete, we need to get into the land market and be willing to take some risks.” He’s of the view that if these projects, in the worst case, can work as market developments, then non-profits should be initiating projects. “We need to give the government projects to invest into because they’re not coming to the table proactively.” 

Gautam sees the benefits of allowing community members to invest in these projects too. “Getting community buy-in for what we are doing is very appealing, and there’s obviously the need to bring in new capital.” Gautam also shares that their Board has been considering different ways to grow the community profile of the organization.

“When we do talk publicly about what we are doing, we are getting traction. But historically, we haven’t used that momentum for fundraising, and we don’t have a way to do what you are doing,” says Gautam with a smile, “of course, that’s why you are doing it!” 

“I’ve long been supportive of community funding for housing development  – I think it’s brilliant!” Gautam wraps up, “we just need to know what to do and where to go.” 

About this Blog Series

In October 2021, Tapestry was selected to take part in a Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) program called the Housing Supply Challenge. This innovative competition encourages residents, interested parties, and experts from across the country to propose creative solutions to housing. The goal: to help meet Canada’s pressing need for safe and affordable homes by breaking down barriers to the creation of new supply.

Tapestry participated in Round 2 of the program, Getting Started, which seeks to find solutions to pre-development challenges, such as community resistance and obtaining financing. The program granted incubation funding to the 29 organizations selected to allow them to further develop and test their solution proposals.

Through six months of research and consultation, we had the opportunity to speak with over 40 interested parties in the affordable housing sector, from housing providers, to development consultants, to funders and lenders. Each and every individual and organization consulted helped to co-design our solution proposal.

The “Financing Affordable Housing with the Power of Community” blog series shares the lessons learnt and stories heard from some of the amazing organizations that we have partnered with.