Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada

#FixtheFormula4Coops

We're calling on the Ontario government to update the outdated funding formula that’s hurting thousands of families living in affordable housing and protect these communities for the future.

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The end of mortgage issue.

21,000 co-op homes in Ontario are at risk.

Housing Services Act (HSA) co-ops across the province are near the end of their mortgages. This would seem like a good thing. But an outdated funding formula means that this could put the co-op – and the low-income residents who live there – in a worse position.

The current formula means that without mortgage costs, a co-op may fall into a “negative operating subsidy" position and lose crucial government assistance that covers the cost of rental assistance and property tax. This will leave co-ops with not enough money to repair their homes putting the entire co-op at risk. It may also lead to a loss assistance for low-income households.

Learn more about the funding formula.

The cost of doing nothing.

As mortgages mature, so do the buildings.

While it was possible to fund basic maintenance and repairs under the current formula, buildings that are over 30 years old require costly renovations to remain in operation. Not changing the funding formula will put at risk tens of thousands of affordable co-op and non-profit homes across Ontario.

After 35-years Maple Glen Co-op’s capital repairs cost $2.1 million

See how one HSA co-op has been impacted.

Fix the formula.

A simple solution to the end of mortgage problem.

Under a new funding formula, when an HSA co-op reaches end of mortgage, rental assistance and property tax support would continue but operating subsidy would not. This would allow co-ops to use mortgage savings to help fund crucial investments in capital repairs. We are calling on the Ontario government to fix the formula in the new service agreement regulation to address the end of mortgage issue.

Ensuring we fix the formula is key to the sustainability of our HSA co-ops – and the security of the low and moderate-income households who live there. The future of these affordable, good-quality homes depends on this.

Simply removing operating subsidy, and including rental assistance and property tax subsidy for low-income households in the new service agreement regulation would fix the formula.

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Pass a Fix the Formula resolution at your co-op