Why aim for 20% community housing in Canada?
Canada is facing an unprecedented housing crisis, and finding sustainable solutions is urgent. Setting a target of 20% community housing (up from 3.5% currently) is a necessary step to ensure equitable housing access and greater community resilience. It’s a long-term vision rooted in sustainability, inclusion, and collective action.
Transforming how we build and collaborate
Achieving this target means reimagining the ways we plan, finance, and work together. It calls for hybrid models and bold partnerships that align mission and means.
It also requires the sector unlocks its economic potential with new financial approaches from reinvesting property equity to building mixed-income projects that balance affordability with long-term viability.
Shifting mindsets
Transforming the sector requires a shift in how we think, collaborate, and innovate. It means embracing a culture that is more open to experimentation and new operational models, while remaining true to the core values that define community housing: social justice, solidarity, and democratic governance.
For this cultural evolution to take root and endure, it must be grounded in a sector that is skilled, well-structured, and representative. By investing in professional capacity building, the Centre aims to strengthen sector expertise, standardize practices, and recognize knowledge drawn from on-the-ground experience. By promoting more diverse leadership, it creates space for a broader range of voices and lived experiences that truly reflect the communities being served. These strategic choices equip the sector to face transformation with greater confidence, coherence, and legitimacy.
Joining forces for success
Success lies in collaboration between government, community, philanthropy, and private capital. Strategic partnerships are key to unlocking resources, enabling large-scale coordinated action, streamlining processes and fostering innovation.
A realistic ambition
The 20% target is ambitious, but it is within reach. With courage, boldness and shared purpose, we can build a future where community housing is not the exception, but a central pillar of Canada’s housing system.
News on the 20% target
Coaching for Growth pilot opens for Edmonton community housing providers
EDMONTON – The Community Housing Transformation Centre is seeking up to four local non-profit housing providers to join Coaching for Growth, a new capacity building pilot designed to help organizations […]
Alberta Seniors and Community Housing Association: Tools to scale
For many community housing providers, certain questions keep coming back to the table: how can we acquire new buildings without putting the organization at risk? How can we maintain the […]
Three partners, one mission: RentSmart comes to Calgary
Partnership is at the heart of RentSmart’s arrival in Calgary. The Centre, the City of Calgary Home Program and the Canadian Mental Health Association – Calgary Region are working together […]
Transforming faith-owned properties into community housing projects: Relèven’s approach
Properties owned by faith-based organizations represent a largely untapped potential for community housing. Often well located and already integrated into their neighborhoods, these buildings can offer development opportunities where available […]