The Regional Affordable Housing Strategy



 








We have released the new �Affordable housing is safe, secure, stable, accessible living environment that allows a person to live within their income level, and maintain a healthy quality of life. Affordable housing adequately suits the needs of low and moderate-income households at costs below those generally found in the local Cowichan Valley market. It may take a number of forms that exist along a continuum � from emergency shelters, to transitional housing, to non-market rental (also known as social or subsidized housing), to formal and informal rental, and ending with affordable home ownership.

For housing to be affordable a household should not spend more than 30 percent of gross income on shelter costs. The highest priority for affordable housing is for the homeless, marginally housed and �core needs households� that spend more than 50 percent of their income on shelter costs.�

FAST FACTS

If the following low-income groups were identified in 2006:

 

The changes in the economy and the investment sector has only increased the need for affordable housing. The most recent indicator of need has been food bank activity within the region.

FOOD BANK ACTIVITY
Additional indicators of Affordable Housing needs can be found in the Food Bank Fast Facts.