Working Together - Finding Solutions To Affordable Accommodations For Students

Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students

Executive Summary Education is our future. The province of Alberta has a thriving economy. In conjunction with this economy, we must ensure that we are able to meet future societal needs. Therefore we must provide a quality, affordable and accessible education system. With the booming economy, a crisis in housing has been created. The vacancy rate is at an all time low, only 0.5% on rental units for the first half of 20071. Along with shortage of available accommodations, rent continues to increase at rates above the Alberta Consumer Price Index. The number of purpose-built rental accommodations is decreasing. We are in a housing crisis and students are finding themselves trapped. As most students survive on a fixed income, and many require financial aid, the access to university is becoming increasingly difficult. Currently 59% of students graduate with debt; the average level of debt is $24,0472. As key stakeholders, we need to act now and we need to take multiple approaches to ensure that we continue to educate the leaders of the future. As part of taking action to address affordable housing for students, the University of Calgary Students’ Union presents a number of key recommendations to all stakeholders. The purpose of this document is to engage stakeholders in dialogue and collaborations in an effort to develop long-term solutions for students.

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Cananda Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), Annual study, Spring 2007 The Price of Knowledge 2006, Chapter 5, Student Debt: Trends and Consquences. Written Joseph Berger, Anne Motte and Andrew Parkin, November 2006, page 3. 2

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students

Key Recommendations The University of Calgary Students’ Union 1. Communicate to students the current resources in place that directly help them through this crisis, such as the Municipal Affairs and Housing Rent Supplement Program.

University of Calgary 1. Complete construction of new high-density residence facilities by September 2009, bringing the number of beds up to at least 11.5% of student population. 2. Develop a long-term plan designed to bring the total number of on-campus beds up to 15% of the full time student population (for both family and single student accommodation). 3. Develop a fee model that would allow for predictable fee increases, such as the Alberta Consumer Price Index.

City of Calgary 1. Provide land for the creation of “inter-institutional student residences on transit lines”. 2. Amend City Land Use By-Laws to allow secondary suites as a permitted use in all zones surrounding the university and main transit lines to and from the university. 3. Develop a series of incentives for homeowners with illegal suites to bring them up to code. 4. Develop an information kit for homeowners who wish to develop new suites or bring their suites up to code. 5. Require suite ready construction in all new homes surrounding the university and main transit lines to and from the university.

Province of Alberta 1. Help fund the creation of “inter-institutional student residences on transit lines” through the donation of land and capital funding. 2. Provide capital grants and favorable financing towards the construction of new on-campus residence facilities. 3. Remove the municipal tax burden assessed upon existing and future University Residence facilities by amending the Municipal Government Act. 4. Re-examine the provincial task force recommendation for temporary “rent stability guidelines”.

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students 5. Provide one-time grants or forgivable loans up to $15,000 to homeowners surrounding the university and main transit lines to and from the university who will upgrade their existing suites to meet building codes. 6. Amend the Municipal Government Act to support more inclusionary zoning in new developments requiring a certain portion of land to be designated for affordable accommodation projects. 7. Establish more effective policies to defer condo conversions by providing a one year notification period with rent maintenance to ensure a more stable rental market. 8. Adjust the student finance system to acknowledge the true cost of living in Calgary by using the market basket approach to allow students on financial aid to cover rent.

Government of Canada 1. Extend the Rental Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program Secondary and Garden Suite Initiative (RRAP) to cover landlords who develop or improve existing suites for use by students.

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students

Background The rental market in Calgary has a vacancy rate of 0.5%. This reality creates a very challenging environment for students since there are not enough on-campus residence beds. Furthermore, the rental market is becoming increasingly competitive and the cost of rent is simply too expensive for many who survive on fixed incomes. The Students’ Union, the University of Calgary and all levels of government must work together to provide tangible solutions for students. There is no single fix solution for student accommodation. Solutions need to take a multi-faceted approach with co-operation from all levels of government so all students have access to a university education with a quality and affordable place to live.

Challenges Specific to Students 1. On-campus Residence As of August 2007, the residence waiting list at the University of Calgary is 775 students, of which 429 are undergraduates, 44 are transfer students, 102 are graduate students and 200 are in need of family accommodation.3 Students who lived in residence previously were only able to apply between January 2007 and February 2007 due to the large wait list of over 900 students. Despite the benefits of a large vibrant residence community, as of August 2007 the University of Calgary is far behind other comparable institutions in its ability to house students on-campus. Currently, all full time undergraduate students, as well as all graduate students, are eligible for a non-existent bed in the University of Calgary’s residence facilities. Based on the 2006/2007 enrollment numbers, 24,141 students could apply for a spot in residence, but only 1,786 spots currently exist, or enough to house 7.4% of the overall student population. This is a very low number when compared with the capacity of other major urban universities. The following chart (next page) demonstrates the available number of beds at the University of Victoria, the University of British Columbia and the University of Alberta.

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Residence Assignment model, 2007 4

Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students P e r c e n t a g e o f S t u d e n t P o p u la t io n O n - C a m p u s H o u s in g c a n A c c o m m o d a t e b y In s t it u t io n 2 0 1 6 .1

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1 2 .2

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2. Student Need Approximately 44.79% (+/- 5%) of University of Calgary students come from communities outside the city of Calgary4. Under current enrollment numbers that means approximately 10,622 students are not from Calgary and would inherently need some form of accommodation. Rural students must compete for accommodation in a very competitive market in order to access an education at the University of Calgary.

3. Lack of Rental Stock The current Calgary rental market is tight. Alongside Victoria, Calgary has the lowest vacancy in Canada5 and the market continues to shrink as immigration and growth are fueled by Alberta’s thriving economy. The apartment vacancy rate in the city has dropped from 1.6% in October 2005 to 0.5% in October 2006 with little change in 2007.6 To compound this problem the number of purpose-built rental units is declining, mainly through condo conversion. Between 2001 and 2006 a total of 5,000 purpose-built rental units were lost through condo conversion.7 In 2006 alone, 1,083 purpose-built rental units were lost, a decrease of 2.6%, bringing the total number of purpose-built rental units down to 40,333 units, of which only 645 were available for rent in October of 2006.8 By April 2007, only 200 purpose-built rental units remained vacant.9 The situation on-campus is no better. Currently there are only 1,786 residence beds to service a full time student population of 19,801 4

University of Calgary Trends and Selected Performance Data 2006 Secondary Suites report, page 8 6 CMHC, Rental Market report, 2006 7 Secondary Suite study, ES-i 8 CMHC, Rental Market report, 2006 9 Secondary Suites study, page 8 5

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students undergraduate students and 4,340 graduate students, or 24,141 students.10 This totals a dismal 7.4% of students having access to oncampus accommodation. With such a low number it is hardly a surprise that there is a 0% vacancy on-campus with approximately 775 students on the waiting list as of August 2007.11 This waiting list number is artificially low, as applications for ‘returning students’ were no longer accepted after February 28, 2007.

4. Cost of Rent In response to historically low vacancies, rent costs across Calgary have drastically increased over the past two years. In purpose-built rental stock, rent increased by an average of 18% for apartments and 15% for townhouses between 2005 and 2006. This trend continued as increases averaged around 8% between 2006 and 2007.12 Due to these increases, rent in Calgary is now the third highest in Canada, only behind Toronto and Vancouver.

Bachelor Suite

Average cost of rent per month $608

1 bedroom average $849 rent 2 bedroom $1037 3 bedroom $968 CMHC Rental Market Report

Traditional Dormitory Two-Person Room Traditional Dormitory Single Room Studio One Bedroom Apartment Double Bedroom Apartment Four Bedroom Apartment

Increase from Oct 2006-Arp 2007 1.4%

Vacancy Rate

8.8%

0.5%

8%

0.6% 0.1%

0.1%

Cost of rent per month (per person) $292 + meal plan ($306-$463/month) $484 + meal plan ($306-$463/month) $647-$683 $747-$793 $548-$583 $507-$609

University of Calgary Residence Rates 2007 (*Above data include utilities, furniture, local phone line and internet services)

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University Fact Book Residence Assignment Model, 2007 12 Secondary Suite study, page 8 11

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students These numbers clearly show the challenge faced by student renters. The market is quickly squeezing students out, and those students able to find somewhere to live are forced to pay increasingly high rents.

5. Fixed Incomes and Financial Aid Most students are on fixed incomes and unable to keep up with the massive rent increases in Calgary over the past 2 years. The accommodation discussion guide released by the Alberta Affordable Accommodation Task Force recognized this challenge stating “the effects of the lack of affordable accommodation are felt most acutely by Albertans who live on fixed incomes.”13 Almost 60% of students receive some form of financial aid, and more often than not, they are unable to receive enough money through our financial aid system. The current maximum a single student living away from home can receive for rent/mortgage and utilities is $409 per month.14 This is well below the cost of many Calgary accommodations. Rural and Aboriginal students are particularly affected as they are forced to live away from home. With the rapid increases in the current housing market, many of these students simply do not have enough money to afford Calgary’s limited accommodations.

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Affordable Housing Task Force, February 2007, Page 4 Alberta Advanced Education and Technology Student Finance document, 2007-2008 7

Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students

Recommendations in Detail University of Calgary 1. Complete construction of new high-density residence facilities by September 2009, bringing the number of beds up to at least 11.5% of student population. 2. Develop a long-term plan designed to bring the total number of oncampus beds up to 15% of the full time student population (for both family and single student accommodation). The capacity of 7.4% at the University of Calgary is far behind the capacity at the University of Alberta (12.4%), the University of Victoria (11.2%) and the University of British Columbia (16.1%). These universities have been selected for comparison with University of Calgary as they are major urban institutions in cities facing rental markets similar to Calgary. The University of Victoria is similar in size to the University of Calgary and Victoria, like Calgary, has some of the lowest vacancy rates in Canada. The University of Alberta is located in Edmonton and has approximately 10,000 students more than the University of Calgary, but is located in a very similar accommodation market to Calgary. Edmonton is also facing similar growth pressures, and corresponding low vacancy rates. Despite its higher ratio of beds to students, waiting lists at the University of Alberta are still of similar size to those at the University of Calgary showing that despite almost 2,000 more beds, there is still sustained demand. The University of British Columbia is located in Vancouver, a city notorious for high rents, low vacancy rates and has the highest ratio of students to residence beds, despite the fact it has nearly 20,000 more students than the University of Calgary. This data clearly shows other institutions in cities with tight rental markets have actively built residence facilities to house students in a tough market. If the University of Calgary is to compete with other large institutions in attracting and retaining quality undergraduate and graduate students from outside of Calgary, it must ensure that it can offer suitable housing. Using these institutions as comparison we recommend the University begin construction immediately to build facilities that would provide 1,000 new beds and bring the student to bed ratio to 11.5% of students. This would help meet the minimum current demand.

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students We also recommend the University of Calgary explore funding support from the provincial or federal levels of government such as a capital grant. A government issued capital grant for residence facilities will allow the construction of facilities with reasonable rental rates for students. In order to be proactive and ensure that this problem does not continue to repeat itself for years to come, we recommend that plans are made and measures taken to ensure that over time the university will aim to have enough residence beds to house 15% of University of Calgary students. This measure is realistic and well under the University of Toronto’s ‘Task Force on Student Housing’ research, which suggests 25% of the population should be housed on campus based on demographics from large, research intensive America schools. We believe this number would be sufficient to ensure that all students have access to education at the University of Calgary. The most important form of student accommodation is found in on-campus residence facilities. The University of Calgary has a long, successful tradition of accommodating students on-campus and studies have shown that there are key benefits to living on-campus. Residence students traditionally are the most active members on campus, getting involved in clubs, playing intramural sports, attending athletic events and performing better academically.15 Simply stated, living in residence provides students with an opportunity to grow personally and academically in a safe living environment. It is important to note that by building more on-campus accommodations, over 2700 students would be removed from the Calgary rental market, relieving some of the pressures felt by people competing for accommodation. On-campus accommodation would not only benefit the students, but also other Calgarians who would now have greater access to accommodation in the city.

3. Develop a fee model that would allow for predictable cost increases, such as the Alberta Consumer Price Index. The Students’ Union believes it is integral that the University develop a fee model based on predictable fee increases in order to ensure existing and future residence facilities will remain affordable for students. Despite extreme fluctuations in the off-campus rental market over the past 4 years, prices have remained relatively stable on-campus, increasing by 3-10% over that time.16 A model that allows for predictable increases provides future stability and ensures that the university will have enough money to cover the cost of maintaining buildings. This model would also ensure renovations and repairs from years of neglect and deferred maintenance would not be financed by current students. By 15 16

University of Calgary Office of Student Experience survey, 2007 TJ Fedyk, Housing Services Coordinator, August 2007 9

Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students adopting a model whereby central funding of some form will be used to bring current buildings up to acceptable conditions, it will ensure that we can take appropriate care of bed spaces we do have at the present time. We propose that increases be limited to the Alberta Consumer Price Index, similar to the current tuition model.

City of Calgary 1. Provide land for the creation of “inter-institutional student residences on transit lines.” The challenge of providing affordable dedicated student housing is not exclusive to the University of Calgary. Recognizing the shared difficulties of financing, constructing, managing and maintaining student housing we encourage the exploration of alternatives to traditional single-campus residences. Constructing dedicated inter-institutional student residences, accessible by public transit, would address many of the goals of the City and its post-secondary institutions. The city and its institutions should provide or encourage dedicated multi-unit developments, distributed or centralized, available for use by the city’s postsecondary students. Efficiencies in providing dedicated housing may be achieved through scale, co-management and financing, land use and demand management. Further, such units may be preferable for some students over traditional off-campus housing by constructing the development on a transit line, providing academic or social amenities on-site, and the creation of a learning community that may not be available in undedicated housing. Building on a transit-line is strongly encouraged. The goal of transit-oriented development is one that benefits both students and the City as a whole, and is already a City best practice. A shared residence built on LRT Route 201, for example – currently running from Somerset-Bridlewood to Dalhousie –would allow affordable access to campuses, while lessening demand for private singleuser transit. Alternatively, a bus-rapid transit (BRT) system, modeled on the successful Route 301 BRT could provide access to the three major Calgary institutions from centralized shared residences. It is proposed that a study be conducted to asses the implications that shared inter-institutional residences may have on the cost and other challenges of providing quality dedicated student housing. Such a study should be cosponsored by the City, the Province, and its interested post-secondary institutions. It is further requested that the City explore land use implications for this option and consider gifting land to such projects along existing or future transit lines.

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students 2. Amend City Land Use By-Laws to allow secondary suites as a permitted use in all zones surrounding the university and main transit lines to and from the university. The City of Calgary is a very important stakeholder in the development of accommodations for students. One of the most important steps the city could take is to allow secondary suites as a permitted use in zones surrounding the university and main transit lines to and from the university. Secondary suites are a large source of off-campus accommodation used by students and they provide many specific benefits including: a. Increased supply of accommodation in low density areas. b. Lower rent costs when compared to purpose-built rental units.17 c. A cost-effective form of rental property in the secondary rental market, as well as representing the largest portion of the rental market.18 d. Easy construction as compared to purpose-built apartment units. Secondary suites supplement the rental market quicker than through the construction of purpose-built rental units.19 e. New legal secondary suite construction leads to an increase in rental supply and correspondingly slows down the upward pressure on rents.20 Despite all of these benefits for the rental market and students alike, secondary suites remain illegal in most areas of Calgary. Despite their illegality, thousands of suites exist in Calgary. Estimates put the number of illegal suites in Calgary between 15,000 and 18,00021 showing that current by-laws have done little to stop the construction of illegal suites. Instead of pretending illegal suites do not exist in developed areas the Students’ Union recommends the city take a proactive approach and allow for the construction of suites in all zones surrounding the University and main transit lines to and from the University. This would allow for the construction of new legal suites in the areas they are needed and would allow for existing illegal suites to be brought up to code and made legal.

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Secondary Suites study, page 36 Ibid, page 9-10 19 Ibid, page13 20 Ibid, page 36 21 Ibid, page 14 18

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students This action also has precedent as both Vancouver and Toronto have changed their by-laws to allow secondary suites in all single-family residential zones. 22 It is important to note that when the by-laws were changed in Vancouver in 2004 there was “broad community acceptance for secondary suites and almost no controversy when the ‘as a right’ zoning came into affect”.23 Also, both Toronto and Vancouver are similar to Calgary as they have large student populations, low vacancy rates and some of the highest rents in the country.

3. Develop a series of incentives for homeowners with illegal suites to bring them up to code. In addition to allowing legal secondary suites across the city, it is essential the city ensure landlords bring illegal suites up to code. Many illegal suites, especially basement suites, have significant safety concerns. Often they are built without regard for the newly updated provincial fire codes, placing their tenants in danger if a fire were to occur. Despite this danger, most students are unwilling to report unsafe conditions as they fear losing their room during the middle of their studies. To ensure safe conditions, the city should provide incentives to landlords to bring their suites up to code. One potential action is to provide a limited tax exemption to homeowners who upgrade their suites. 24 Another option is to waive or reduce licensing and development permit fees for all secondary suites, an action undertaken in many BC municipalities.25 Calgary could also follow the lead of Saskatoon, which refunds all fees for upgrading suites in its inner city neighborhoods as an incentive to create legal suites and to revitalize older areas.26 Increased legal suites would not only benefit students, but would also provide a benefit to the city tax base, because legal suites in homes raise their assessed tax values27, allowing the city to recoup the tax costs from the original exemptions.

4. Develop an information kit for homeowners who wish to develop new suites or bring their suites up to code. Information kits were developed in other cities with some success. In Toronto the “Homeowner Guide to Second Suites” was developed to provide information about secondary suites, and a series of forms called “Second Suites Housing 22

Calgary Secondary Suites Study Ibid, 18 24 United Way Document 25 Ibid, page14 26 Secondary Suite study, page 35 27 Ibid, page36 23

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students Forums” were held in 2004 to educate the public. There is also an information kit available from the City of Toronto explaining how to create a secondary suite that meets all fire, building and accommodation safety standards.28 The city of Saskatoon took a similar approach, consulting a variety of stakeholders, including the University of Saskatchewan Students’ Union, to develop educational tools for landlords including videos, brochures and an accessory suite inspection guide.29 We believe the city of Calgary should take a similar approach in order to provide willing homeowners with the tools they need to upgrade their suites and ensure the safety of their tenants. The University of Calgary Students’ Union would be a willing participant to develop and promote these information kits.

5. Require suite-ready construction in all new homes surrounding the university and main transit lines to and from the university. This is based on a policy used by the city of Vancouver, which requires all new homes to be built suite ready. This ensures that all new homes will be easily adaptable to add a secondary suite if deemed necessary by the homeowner, limiting future construction costs. The policy applies to all single-family dwellings and is now accepted as common practice in Vancouver.30

Province of Alberta 1. Help fund the creation of “inter-institutional student residences on transit lines” through the donation of land and capital funding. As mentioned, the challenge of providing dedicated student housing to postsecondary students is not exclusive to the University of Calgary. Inter-institutional dedicated student residences are offered as a solution to benefit the city, the province and its universities and colleges. We encourage the Province to participate in a study of the feasibility and impacts of such a program. A possible contribution from the Province on this program could involve the Alberta Social Housing Corporation. This organization would be a likely partner in both studying and possibly developing such a program, potentially gifting appropriate land for residences at a subsidized cost. Targeted capital grants for the development of inter-institutional housing and improvements and expansions

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Secondary Suite study, page 22 Ibid, page 23 30 Ibid, page 19 29

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students to the public transit network in Calgary are also areas where the Province’s participation will be integral.

2. Provide capital grants and favorable financing towards the construction of new on-campus residence facilities. The provincial government plays an important role in the development of new residence buildings. Currently the provincial government is debt free, and in the 2006-2007 fiscal year turned a surplus of $7.4 billion dollars.31 Due to the future importance of the knowledge based economy, and the importance of accessibility of education for all Albertans, now is the time for the government to step up and fund the construction of new residence facilities. We recommend the government make a one-time capital grant, for the immediate construction of a new residence building that would provide at least 1,000 new beds for Calgary students. This would be a long-term investment benefiting thousands of Albertans. Currently, residence facilities must run a balanced budget and are not funded by the University. In fact, the University has been receiving 5% of the Residence Services total revenue and is now entering a three year phasing out of this profit margin. This means all residence maintenance (including deferred maintenance), salaries, and new residence developments are funded solely by student fees. If the province could finance new residence buildings by providing a designated construction grant, then student fees could help maintain the current buildings without funding the future expansion of the residence facility. If the government is unwilling to provide a grant for the construction of these facilities, we recommend that it at least provide favorable financing for the buildings. While this option is by no means as favorable as a grant, it would still ensure limited affordability for future residents of the buildings.

3. Remove the municipal tax burden assessed upon existing and future University Residence facilities by amending the Municipal Government Act. Currently Alberta is the only jurisdiction in Canada where municipalities are allowed to assess property taxes on University residences32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39. 31

http://www.finance.gov.ab.ca/publiciations/budget/budget2007/abadv.pdf British Columbia University Foundations Act 33 Saskatchewan Institutional Acts 34 Manitoba Municipal Assessment Act 35 University of Toronto Budget and Operating Plan 36 Canadian Taxpayers Federation (covering New Brunswick universities) 32

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students These taxes directly affect affordability as they are collected directly from a budget which is financed by student fees. The City of Calgary currently collects approximately $350,00040 each year in municipal property taxes. We recommend the provincial government take a pro-active approach to help students and assume the municipal property tax burden assessed upon existing and future residence buildings. This would allow the institutions to use this money to finance new residence construction and ensure affordability of the existing on-campus accommodation stock.

4. Re-examine the provincial task force recommendation for temporary “rent stability guidelines”. As the current situation is dire, the government should revisit the recommendation from MLA Len Webbers Alberta Affordable Accommodation task force of implementing temporary 2 year “rent stability guidelines”41. These temporary rent stability guidelines will help protect students from massive rent hikes many are currently facing. The current policy does little to protect students, as many are on fixed incomes or rely on student financial aid, when rent increases sometimes exceed 20%. Due to the unfortunate situation of landlords taking advantage of the system, a move Premier Ed Stelmach called “Un-Albertan”, we recommend the government revisit the temporary “rent stability guidelines”. This will ensure that already high rental prices remain where they are, allowing time for the construction of new student accommodations which will relieve pressure on the market and give students some relief in the current rental market.

5. Provide one-time grants or forgivable loans up to $15,000 to homeowners surrounding the university and main transit lines to and from the university who will upgrade their existing suites to meet building codes. The government of Alberta has the ability to stimulate secondary suite upgrading in Calgary by providing one time grants or forgivable loans of up to $15,000 to homeowners who will upgrade their existing suites to current provincial building codes to ensure the safety of their tenants. We recommend grants or forgivable loans only be given with the agreement that suites be rented at below market value to ensure affordability, This would only be possible if the municipal and 37

Prince Edward Island- The Real Property Tax Act Nova Scotia Municipal Grants Act 39 Act Respecting Municipal Taxation in the City of St. John’s 40 Residence Services Property Tax Bills for 2006 41 Alberta Affordable Housing Task Force report 38

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students provincial governments work together to change city by-laws allowing suites city wide.

6. Amend the Municipal Government Act to support more inclusionary zoning in new developments requiring them to have a certain portion of land to be designated for affordable accommodation projects. The Students’ Union believes government must plan for the future sustainability of new developments and ensure all new developments are based on a model of inclusionary zoning. This would make certain all new developments have a designated amount of affordable accommodations, which could be used by future students. Not only would this add to the affordable accommodation stock that is actively utilized by students, but would create more vibrant communities similar to other large urban centers in North America. This would also ensure that more affordable accommodations are available for graduating students with large debt and limited financial means to find a home after their studies.

7. Establish more effective polices on condo conversions to ensure a more stable rental market. Over the past 6 years Alberta has seen a dramatic decrease in the purpose-built rental stock due to condo conversions. Condo conversions have accounted for the loss of 5,000 vital rental units between 2001 and 200642, putting a huge strain on the already taxed Calgary rental market. Despite the current population explosion in Calgary there is actually a decline in rental units due to condo conversion.43 Because of this, more must be done to limit further conversions and the decline in the rental market. The current government policy, which requires landlords to give at least one year notice before converting an apartment to a condo, allows landlords and developers to raise rent and force tenants to leave. This is done prior to the one year notification period and allows for early condo conversion. Government policy must be changed to fix this loophole including stipulating that any developer who converts apartments to condos must construct new units to replace the loss in the rental market. This would ensure the number of purposebuilt rental properties remains consistent in providing the same level of valuable off-campus accommodation for students.

42 43

Secondary Suite study, ES-i Ibid, page 7 16

Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students 8. Change student finance system to acknowledge the true cost of living in Calgary by using the market basket approach to allow students on financial aid to cover rent. Current living allowances provided by Alberta Student Financial Aid are not enough to cover the cost of living in Calgary. Last year’s increase of 14% was a step in the right direction, providing badly needed financial aid to students, but as a temporary solution it did little to acknowledge the long term problem of the rising cost of living in Calgary. In order to ensure effective, predictable increases that will allow students receiving financial aid to pay for accommodation, if they are able to find it, we recommend the government of Alberta adopt a market basket approach of determining living allowances, rather than offering the same amount to all Albertans, regardless of the cost of living in their respective centers.

Government of Canada 1. Extend the Rental Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program Secondary and Garden Suite Initiative (RRAP) to cover landlords who develop new suites to be rented to students. While student accommodation is not a traditional concern of the federal government, altering this program could provide significant benefits to students not only in Calgary, but also across Canada. The RRAP program currently provides forgivable loans to homeowners who wish to build new suites to accommodate low income seniors and adults with disabilities with strict affordability measures.44 We propose the program be extended to cover home owners who wish to build new suites to be used by students. In Calgary this loan would cover costs up to $24,000. The program is designed to encourage new suite construction to provide affordable and safe accommodations for these groups. If this program were extended to landlords wishing to house students, it may encourage more landlords to develop off campus student housing, while providing safe suites for the students living there. It would also ensure the newly renovated suites would remain below market value, and affordable for students. We recommend a clause be included that stipulates that renovated suites must be rented to students for a fixed period of 5-10 years. This would increase the affordable rental stock in the city designated for students, as well as ensure a safe living environment for students. We also recommend government develop 44

http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/ab/noho/noho_013.cfm 17

Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students educational tools to inform prospective landlords about the program which will assist in encouraging utilization of the initiative. There is a potential conflict as the Policy requires that non-forgivable loans only be given to suites that comply with local and provincial accommodation laws. This would be in conflict with current city by-laws, which don’t allow for legal suites in developed areas. For this change to be effective, both levels of government must work together to ensure city by-laws meet the requirements of the federal program.

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Working Together: Finding Solutions to Affordable Accommodations for Students

Conclusion We are currently at a crossroads where we know there is an acute shortage of affordable student housing in Calgary. It is time that all levels of government work together and with the university to ensure that more housing is developed and no student is left without a home. There is no single solution to the student-housing problem. We must take a multifaceted approach to meet the challenge. It is time to work together to ensure the future prosperity of our province and recognize that an investment in affordable student housing is an investment in the future of Alberta.

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