Toronto needs to change its definition of affordable housing, advocacy group says

The city of Toronto to change how it defines affordable housing so low-income people can afford to live in the city, says a new report from the anti-poverty group ACORNCanada.

Right now, the city defines itas at or below the average market rent (AMR).

For 2018, that's $1,202 for a one-bedroom apartment and$1,426 for a two-bedroom, though the cost is often hundreds of dollars more a month for people who are moving and trying to begin a new lease.

"We are in a disaster;we are living a crisis," saidAlejandra Ruiz Vargas, a member of ACORN Canada.

"The crisis is there but ... nobody can tackle it."

The Acorn study finds that from 2014-2017, around 40,000 new rental units were built, but only one in 40wereaffordable housing.Justone in 400 new ownership units, meanwhile,were considered affordable.

It also finds that from2005-2015, rent prices increased by 20 per cent,while median household income increased byfive per cent.

Ruiz Vargas says she knows of families of four or five people living in a one-bedroom apartment who can't afford to move anywhere else because rents have jumped.

'Riskychoices to get by'

Mari-Anne Spagnola, 63, has a heart condition and gets close to $1,200from her disability cheque. Buther bachelor suite costs almost $900 a month, which means she's had to make some riskychoices to get by.

"I would miss doctor's appointments, take half my pills, things like that, because I couldn't afford it," she told CBC Toronto.

Because ofmany stories like Spagnola's, ACORNCanada is calling on the cityto change its definition of affordable rentto 30 per centof one's income before taxesa definition already used by the federal and provincial governments.

The group wants the mayor and city council to increase the city's supply of what it calls "deeply affordable units" and also ensure the affordable housing definition serves low and moderate income tenants.

The director of the city's Affordable Housing Office is aware there's a problem and calls it "severe."

'They should have more choice'

"A lot of people are kind of feeling stuck within the housing system and that's not a good thing," saidSean Gadon.

"They should have more choice;they should have more opportunity,"

But he says the city has added more affordable housing, mentioning the Open Door Initiative.

He says the initiative encourages developers to create new affordable housing, resulting in the addition of about3,300 units over the past three years.

But those units are only "affordable" under the city's current definition, which ACORN Canada is pushing to change.

Gadon says the city doesn't have enough revenue to pay for programs that would provide lower, subsidized rents, something more than 90,000 households currently receive, but the waiting list is so long, it's left about200,000 without affordable housing.

He hopes the upcoming federal housing strategy and possible initiatives from the new Ontario government will bring more possibilities.

Kenn Hale, legal director of theAdvocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario, agreesthe city needs to change its policies.

"The people on the waiting list are the people we should be building housing for," Hale said.

"If the people most in need can't afford what you're building with the public subsidies, then something is wrong."