Homes in Vancouver on April 16, 2019.JONATHAN HAYWARD/The Canadian Press
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic and it seems everyone is focused on the critical dose of medicine that can safeguard our health and kickstart the economy. But the vaccine isn’t the only shot in the arm we need for British Columbia’s economic rebound.
In particular, British Columbia needs to be ready to welcome the world again by building more homes for a growing population. It requires hard work, timely decisions and thoughtful planning.
Early on in the COVID-19 pandemic, the building sector was declared an essential service allowing important projects to continue, employing thousands of British Columbians in communities across the province. New residential projects were launched and real estate transactions continued on innovative platforms, representing one of the few economic bright spots in a troubled time.
But the uncertainty related to the pandemic as well as other issues meant a significant reduction in the number of new homes created.
In a normal year, B.C. builders typically add 20,000 homes to the market. Specifically, those are new townhouses, concrete condominiums and low-rise wood-frame apartments that are necessary for a province that has grown as much as British Columbia.
But in 2020, just 8,300 new homes were added. The year before, it was just 7,500. Look no further if you’re wondering why prices remain high and housing availability remains low.
Our housing crisis may have been overshadowed in the past year but it persists along with all its symptoms: high prices, low rental vacancy and too few homes.
We must take action now to ensure British Columbia is ready for the economic rebound.
A number of the fundamentals remain strong, including record-low interest rates, skyrocketing saving rates among Canadians and pent-up demand from consumers, as evidenced by the strong economic gains in late 2020. British Columbia also remains one of the most beautiful and desirable places in Canada to call home.
In addition, as the pandemic wanes, our borders will once again open to the world. That means more foreign students, more temporary foreign workers and more immigration. Canada has announced its intention to welcome 1.2 million immigrants over the next three years, many of whom will choose to locate in British Columbia. Immigrants are traditionally a key driver of British Columbia population growth and we need their labour – but where will they live? We can’t sit back and assume everything will be fine.
As community builders, we have solutions that can ensure we are prepared for the rebound. They include building a wider mix of home options including micro-suites, seniors’ living facilities and townhouses and row homes for families. We need more rental suites, more homes near transit lines and we need speedier municipal approvals. Although hard to believe, it can often take five years in Metro Vancouver before new homes can be realized. That means if a residential project were submitted today, residents wouldn’t move in until 2026, an unreasonable timeframe by any measure.
In the months ahead, there are sure to be many more challenges and uncertainties as we turn the page on COVID-19. But if nothing else, the pandemic has taught us that in times of crisis, we have the ability to quickly innovate and adapt to meet critical needs.
If our economy is going to fully recover, we must employ the same innovative thinking as we return to traditional levels of building activity. That means making smart, timely decisions now to ensure we have enough homes to accommodate a growing province.
The arrival of the vaccine and the lifting of health restrictions will allow our economy to grow. Thoughtful planning and well-timed decisions will allow it to flourish. The strength of tomorrow’s recovery will be based on the actions we take today.
Anne McMullin is president and CEO of the Urban Development Institute, an association of the real estate and building industry which creates communities, supports thousands of B.C. jobs and creates billions in economic activity.
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