Rental Housing Impact of Potential Bridge

Rental Housing Impact of Potential Bridge
Twinning in Campbellford
August 2013
26 Colborne Street
Cambridge, ON
N1R 1R2
0
Table of Contents
1.0 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................... 1
2.0 EXISTING RENTAL HOUSING MARKET ................................................................................................... 1
2.1 Rental Housing Stock .......................................................................................................................... 1
2.2 Market Rental Rates............................................................................................................................ 2
3.0 HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS IN THE VICINITY OF THE CAMPBELLFORD BRIDGE ................................ 5
3.1 Characteristics of Residential Apartments in Study Area ................................................................... 6
4.0 IMPACT ON LOCAL RENTAL HOUSING MARKET .................................................................................... 9
5.0 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................................ 10
APPENDIX ................................................................................................................................................... 11
1
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Tim Welch Consulting has been retained by Northumberland County to undertake
an analysis of the rental housing stock in close proximity to the road bridge in
downtown Campbellford. The purpose of this report is to assess the impact of the
possible future demolition of the existing rental housing on a number of identified
buildings adjacent to the bridge. This report has been produced for
Northumberland County as background information required as part of the
Environmental Assessment being undertaken for the Trent River Bridge project in
Campbellford, Ontario.
To provide context, an analysis of the rental housing market in both
Northumberland County and Campbellford is provided as well as detailed
information on the buildings to be potentially impacted by the bridge expansion.
2.0 EXISTING RENTAL HOUSING MARKET
2.1 Rental Housing Stock
According to the 2011 Census, the community of Campbellford has approximately
1,525 dwelling units of which 1,095 (72%) are single detached homes. There are
approximately 310 units of apartment style housing in the community with 280
units in apartment’s less than five storeys in height and 30 units in duplexes.
Table 2.1.1: Total Number of Occupied Dwellings by Municipality in Northumberland County, 2011
Total Number of Dwellings
Single Detached
Semi- Detached
Row House
Apartment, Duplex
Apartment, less than 5 storeys
Apartment, greater than five
storeys
Total Mult-Residential Dwelling
Units
(includes all apartment units)
Campbellford
1,525
1,095
(71.8%)
40
2.6%
85
(5.6%)
30
(2.0%)
280
(18.4%)
Trent Hills
5,335
4,730
(88.7%)
55
(1.0%)
85
(1.6%)
60
(1.0%)
385
(7.2%)
0
0
310
(20.4%)
445
(8.3%)
Port Hope
5,090
3,445
(67.7%)
250
(4.9%)
315
(6.2%)
90
(1.8%)
605
(11.9%)
365
(7.2%)
Cobourg
8,045
4,750
(59.0%)
365
(4.5%)
855
(10.6%)
145
(1.8%)
1530
(19.0%)
365
(4.5%)
Brighton
2700
2275
(84.3%)
55
(2.0%)
85
(3.1%)
20
(0.7%)
215
(8.0%)
1060
(20.9%)
2040
(25.4%)
235
(8.7%)
0
Source: Census Canada, Census Profile, 2011
1
As shown on Table 2.1.1, 310 of Trent Hills 445 multi-residential dwelling units
(70%) are located in Campbellford1. Based on the Census data, more than 72% of
the municipality’s rental and ownership apartment units and half of its duplex
units are located within the Campbellford community. While the table above is
useful for showing the distribution of dwelling types, it does not indicate the
number of rented dwellings as households may be renting single, semi-detached
or row housing. In addition, condominiums can also be classified as apartments.
According to 2006 Census, Trent Hills had approximately 920 rented dwellings
representing 17.2% of the residential dwellings in the municipality. A significant
portion of the rental stock is presumed to be within Campbellford, the
municipality’s largest community. Although the actual number of rental units in
Campbellford is comparably smaller than in the larger urban centres of Port Hope
and Cobourg, they nevertheless play an important role in providing
accommodation for a significant number of people in the area, especially for
people with low and moderate incomes. Data for the number of rented dwellings
in Campbellford in both the 2006 and 2011 Census was unavailable.
2.2 Market Rental Rates
The Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation produces a Rental Market Report
every spring and fall for urban areas to measure ongoing trends in their rental
market. These trend vacancy rates, average market rents for rental units
(bachelor – 3+ bedroom), rate of change in market rents as well as the number of
apartment units in each rental market. The latest Rental Market Report was
produced in Fall 2012 and outlines the trends in Port Hope and Cobourg.
The report notes that the vacancy rate in Port Hope increased from 1.9% to 2.3%
while Cobourg’s fell from 2.2% to 1.4% between October 2011 and 2012. Vacancy
1
Data is taken from the 2011 Census as CMHC does not study the rental market in Campbellford. As a result some
rental units in single family dwellings, duplexes and or basement suites may not be counted. The total number of
multi-residential dwelling units therefore only measures the number of apartments.
2
rates were quite low (0.0%) for 3+ bedroom apartments in Cobourg and Port
Hope and for Bachelor units in Cobourg. Similarly, 1 bedroom apartments in
Brighton had a vacancy rate of 0.0%. It should be noted that rental vacancy rate
data was not available for bachelor units in Port Hope. Vacancy rates for Brighton
were not available as data was suppressed to protect confidentiality or was not
statistically reliable. It is generally considered that rental markets are balanced
when vacancy rates are 3.0 per cent, therefore Port Hope and Cobourg would be
considered to have somewhat tight rental vacancy rates.
Brighton
Cobourg
Port
Hope
Table 2.2.1 – Private Apartment Vacancy Rates, 2011-2012
Bachelor
1 Bedroom
2 Bedroom
3+ Bedroom
Oct-11 Oct-12 Oct-11 Oct-12 Oct-11 Oct-12 Oct-11 Oct-12
**
**
0.0
0.0
**
0.9
**
**
0.0
0.0
3.4
3.8
2.0
0.6
0.0
0.0
0.0
**
3.0
2.5
1.4
2.6
0.0
0.0
Total
Oct-11 Oct-12
**
**
2.2
1.4
1.9
2.3
Source: CMHC, Rental Market Report – Ontario Highlights, Fall 2012
** Data suppressed to protect confidentiality or data not statistically reliable
During this period the average rent increased by $24 in Cobourg (2.7%) and by
$53 (5.6%) in Port Hope. Average monthly rents in Cobourg increased by 5.2%.
Overall the largest increases were for 2 bedroom apartments (5.8%) and for 1
bedroom apartments (2.8%) in the three municipalities. Only bachelor units in
Cobourg experienced a decline in annual monthly rents.
Table 2.2.2 – Private Apartment Average Rents, 2011-2012
Bachelor
Oct-11 Oct-12
1 Bedroom
2 Bedroom
3+ Bedroom
Oct-11 Oct-12 Oct-11 Oct-12 Oct-11 Oct-12
Brighton
622
627
705
746
**
**
**
**
(0.8%)
(5.8%)
Cobourg
583
517
745
770
883
924
1,077
1,111
(-11%)
(3.3%)
(4.6%)
(3.2%)
Port
820
855
919
983
1,224
1,234
517
**
Hope
(4.3%)
(7.0%)
(0.8%)
Source: CMHC, Rental Market Report – Ontario Highlights, Fall 2012
** Data suppressed to protect confidentiality or data not statistically reliable
Total
Oct-11 Oct-12
696
732
(5.2%)
856
880
(2.8%)
880
933
(6.0%)
The CMHC report does not include the community of Campbellford nor the
Municipality of Trent Hills in its Rental Market Survey. To determine an
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approximate monthly rent in the community, an internet search was conducted
to see what rental stock was available in late June, 2013, their monthly rent, what
utilities were included in the monthly rent and whether the unit was targeted to a
specific demographic (i.e. seniors).
In total, nine rental units were found ranging in price from $675 to $1,030. Of the
four one bedrooms, rents ranged from $600 to $850 a month with three including
all utilities. In comparison, rents for the five two bedroom units ranged from $675
to $1,030 with only one unit including all utilities. The remaining four apartment
units required tenants to pay for hydro. Based on this modest sized survey, the
average rent in Campbellford for one bedroom apartments is $712 and $839 for
two bedroom apartments. Both averages are lower than those found in Cobourg
and Port Hope but higher than those in Brighton.
It should be noted, three of the five one bedroom units were geared to senior or
mature households only.
Table 2.2.3: Monthly Rents in Campbellford: Internet Survey Results
Number of Bedrooms
Monthly Rent Utilities Included
Demographic
One bedroom
$700
All included
One bedroom
$700
Hydro extra
One bedroom
$600
All included
One bedroom
$850
All included
Average Rent
$712
Two bedroom
$1,030
All included
Mature
Two bedroom
$890
Hydro extra
Mature
Two bedroom
$725
Hydro extra
Two bedroom
$875
Hydro extra
Mature
Two bedroom
$675
Hydro extra
Average Rent
$839
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3.0 HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS IN THE VICINITY OF THE CAMPBELLFORD
BRIDGE
Figure 3.0.1 (following page) shows that seven properties (as per 2012 Genivar
Feasibility Report) may be affected by the potential bridge widening in downtown
Campbellford. These properties are:







16 Bridge St. W.
12 Bridge St. W.
8-10 Bridge St. W.
4-6 Bridge St. W.
29 Bridge St. E.
2 Front St. N
6 Front St. N
To determine the possible impact that the demolition of these buildings may have
on the local rental market, property owners were contacted to understand the
general condition of the building as well as more specific details regarding the
residential units themselves. This included determining the number of residential
units in each building, monthly rents and utilities, vacancy levels, demographic
composition of tenants and recent building upgrades. All six of the property
owners of the seven buildings were contacted by phone to obtain this
information.
In addition to a verbal interview a visual inspection of the building exteriors was
carried out on all seven properties to determine the general condition of the
building. Only one property (6 Front St. N) was inspected on the interior.
5
Figure 3.0.1 – Map of Affected Properties (per 2012 Genivar Feasibility Report)
3.1 Characteristics of Residential Apartments in Study Area
The seven buildings contain 46 rental apartment dwelling units or 5% (based on
2006 date – a total of 920 units available) of Trent Hill’s rental stock. Of these 27
are one bedroom apartments and 12 are two bedroom apartments. The
remaining seven apartments are comprised of 5 bachelor suites and 2-three
bedroom apartments.
The monthly rents in these units range from a low of $415 for a bachelor
apartment to $1,050 for a three bedroom apartment. Table 3.0.1 shows the
average monthly rents for each apartment type in the study area. Approximately
half of the rental apartments include utilities in their monthly rent while the
remainder exclude hydro and require the tenant to pay it.
Table 3.1.1: Number of Apartments and Average Rents in Study Area
Number of Units
Average Rent
Bach
5
$558
1 Bedroom
27
$670
2 Bedroom
12
$762
3 Bedroom
2
$1,050
Total/Avg
46
$785
The relatively low monthly rents reflect in part, the relative age of the building as
well as the length of time some tenants have resided in their respective suites.
This is particularly the case for a number of the bachelor units where one tenant
6
was paying $415 a month in rent. Property owners indicated that the choice to
remain in the units for such a long period was a combination of the location,
proximity to services, relatively low rent (see Table 2.2.1 for average rents in
Campbellford) and the modest supply of rental accommodation in Campbellford.
Figure 3.1.1: Exterior rear side of 2 and 6 Front St. N.
Figure 3.1.2: Exterior of 29 Bridge St. E.
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In general, the affected buildings are in modest physical shape, a condition that
reflects both the relative age of the buildings as well as partial renovations and
repairs undertaken in recent years. Among these were becoming compliant with
fire code issues, upgrading rental units by replacing flooring, kitchens and
bathrooms, refinishing roof’s, repairing exterior walls and installing new high
efficiency furnaces. The apartments are habitable but would more likely be
described as “tired,” or not fully renovated.
Visual inspections revealed that none of the buildings appeared to have had
major or severe structural issues such as cracking foundations, loose exterior
bricks or buckling walls. When there were issues, they were minor such as peeling
exterior paint on one building and two broken windows in another.
Only one property owner provided access to the interior of their building. In
general the condition of the building was fair with the common areas receiving
new laminated flooring in some spots.
A key theme among all of the properties was the low vacancy rates2 and high
demand for all the rental units. The vast majority of the apartments were
occupied. Property owners indicated that vacant units were either the result of
unit upgrades, being selective with choosing tenants or using the unit for other
purposes such as an office. Owners also noted that when a unit did become
vacant, they had little difficulty finding new tenants for it.
While there was no personal information provided by the landlords about
individual tenants, the tenants were described as generally modest incomes with
some working full or part time while a number of the other residents were
receiving social assistance.
2
The total number of vacant units was not possible to calculate as some property owners declined to provide
exact figures noting that privacy confidentiality concerns.
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4.0 IMPACT ON LOCAL RENTAL HOUSING MARKET
With these seven buildings containing 46 rental apartments, or 5% of the
Municipality of Trent Hill’s entire rental stock and an even higher percentage of
Campbellford’s rental stock, if they were all demolished, there would be a
significant negative impact on the supply of rental housing.
However it is understood that the potential expansion of the bridge would not
likely occur for at least 10 years which would allow the Municipality of Trent Hills
and the County of Northumberland to plan for the potential impact on the rental
stock, as well as the impact on the individuals in the existing apartments.
Currently the Bloor Park Village development of 24 units of affordable rental
townhouses in Campbellford is under construction and will be completed by the
end of 2013. These units are being created with significant financial assistance
from the Canada-Ontario Investment in Affordable Housing program. Rents for
these units are based on 80% of the Northumberland County average rents and
will be set at $600 for the 14 one bedroom units and $650 per month for the 10
two bedroom units (equal to or lower than the rents for most of the apartments
potentially affected by the bridge expansion). These new units are accessible
ground level units (unlike the rental apartments neighbouring the bridge) and
will be in very good physical shape, in contrast to the older apartments
neighbouring the bridge. The creation of these 24 units would make up more
than half of the units potentially lost to the bridge expansion.
There is also the potential over a ten year horizon to plan for the creation of
additional rental units in Campbellford as it has been announced in 2013 that the
Federal government is extending for five more years its Investment in Affordable
Housing program. It is expected that the Province of Ontario will match that
Federal funding, thus providing a potential source of funding to help create new
rental apartments in Campbellford (as well as other areas of Northumberland
County) to offset future losses of the rental apartments adjacent to the bridge.
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The County of Northumberland is also in the process of creating a 10 year Housing
and Homelessness Plan which is expected to set out a variety of goals and
initiatives to help meet the housing needs across the County including
Campbellford.
And finally it should be noted that in Campbellford there exists four existing social
housing developments in addition to the new Bloor Park Village development,
with more than 150 rental units. If the bridge does expand, there should be
priority given to house the existing tenants in the 7 buildings adjacent to the
bridge, if they have modest incomes which qualify for financially assisted housing,
to ensure that they have an affordable rental home to relocate to. A home which
will, generally speaking, be of higher maintained quality than the homes they are
currently living in.
5.0 CONCLUSION
There is a significant impact on the rental housing stock in Campbellford/Trent
Hills if the bridge widening moves forward, as 46 rental apartments could be lost.
However with current new affordable housing development under construction,
and long term planning horizons to allow adequate time to create additional new
rental housing (potentially through some use of anticipated Federal-Provincial
housing funds over the next five years), as well as the development of a rehousing protocol for the tenants residing in the existing buildings, there is the
ability to work to mitigate the loss of the rental housing and potentially improve
the overall quality of the rental housing stock in Campbellford.
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APPENDIX – BUILDINGS WITHIN THE STUDY AREA
6 Front St. N.
Kitchen of vacant one bedroom apartment – currently being used as an office by the owner.
11
Hydro meters in the second storey hallway.
Common area on second floor.
12
New flooring in hallway.
13
APPENDIX: 2 Front St. N.
14
15
APPENDIX: 29 Bridge St. E.
16
17
Interior of newly renovated apartment – taken from online rental ad
18
Interior of newly renovated apartment – taken from online rental ad
19
APPENDIX: 4-6 Bridge St. W.
Exterior of 4-6 Bridge St. W. (closest) along with adjacent properties
Exterior of 4-6 Bridge St. W. (building on right side of picture)
20
Ground level residential unit
Rear of 4-6 Bridge St. W. including addition.
21
Side of 4-6 Bridge St. W.
22
APPENDIX: 8-10 Bridge St. W.
Commercial store fronts in 8-10 and 12 Bridge St. W.
Entrance to second storey residential units. Ground level rental unit in 8-10 Bridge St. W.
23
Entrance to second storey apartments and ground level rental unit.
Rear of 8-10 and 12 Bridge St. W.
24
APPENDIX: 12 Bridge St. W.
Rear of 12 Bridge St. W.
Exterior of 8-10, 12 and 16 Bridge St. W.
25
Ground level commercial unit
26
APPENDIX: 16 Bridge St. W.
27
Rear of 12 and 16 Bridge St. W.
28
29