{"id":441960,"date":"2022-05-04T21:37:54","date_gmt":"2022-05-04T18:37:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/ahmed-hussen-has-a-plan-to-solve-canadas-housing-crisis\/"},"modified":"2022-05-04T21:37:54","modified_gmt":"2022-05-04T18:37:54","slug":"ahmed-hussen-has-a-plan-to-solve-canadas-housing-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/ahmed-hussen-has-a-plan-to-solve-canadas-housing-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"#Ahmed Hussen has a plan to solve Canada\u2019s housing crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a341a6c123b1\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a341a6c123b1\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/ahmed-hussen-has-a-plan-to-solve-canadas-housing-crisis\/#%E2%80%9CAhmed_Hussen_has_a_plan_to_solve_Canadas_housing_crisis%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;Ahmed Hussen has a plan to solve Canada\u2019s housing crisis&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CAhmed_Hussen_has_a_plan_to_solve_Canadas_housing_crisis%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;Ahmed Hussen has a plan to solve Canada\u2019s housing crisis&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n                                                                        Ahmed Hussen\u2019s first home in Canada was a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a>-housing unit on Hess Street in Hamilton that he shared with his cousin. He was only 16 years old then, a refugee who had fled Somalia during the civil war. By 2002, the same year he completed an undergraduate degree at York University, Hussen had co-founded the Regent Park Community Council to advocate for more subsidized units, services and amenities for residents amid a massive $500-million revitalization of the Toronto neighbourhood.<\/p>\n<p>Hussen, who was elected to Parliament in 2015 and <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ointed minister of housing and diversity and inclusion last October, has deep knowledge of the complexities of unaffordable housing. The current real estate market has Canadians frantically scrambling for property\u2014or priced out altogether. The issue was the undisputed focus of April\u2019s federal budget, which outlined plans to increase construction, double tax credits for first-time home buyers, ban blind bidding and freeze foreign purchases of residential properties for the next two years. Some experts have questioned whether the measures will solve the problem, but Hussen remains confident in the Liberals\u2019 vision.<\/p>\n<p>Aaron Hutchins sat down with Hussen to discuss Canada\u2019s housing crisis and more:<\/p>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">You lived in social housing during your early years in Canada. How much do you factor in that experience when you\u2019re proposing solutions to a housing crisis that\u2019s rooted in affordability?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Everyone in public office brings their personal and professional experience to the table. One of the reasons I\u2019m passionate about making sure we increase our investments in affordable housing is because I know how much having a roof over your head can make a difference for someone. I would not have been able to pursue a post-secondary education, finish university and build up my skills to get a decent job if it weren\u2019t for social housing units. There\u2019s simply no way.<\/p>\n<p>I want to make sure that we live in a country where those who are struggling to find affordable housing can get help from the government. We have to prevent people who are at risk of becoming homeless from ending up on the street. And we have to make sure that we find permanent housing solutions for those who are there now. It diminishes Canadian society when the final housing option for some people is to live on the street. It\u2019s a failure for all of us.<\/p>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">The cost of rent is untenable in many parts of the country. The average one-bedroom in Vancouver and Toronto now costs more than $2,000 a month.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>There are plenty of folks who are increasingly being priced out of the rental market. They\u2019re moving farther away from the cities that they work in. I\u2019m talking about construction workers, paramedics, firefighters and teachers. A lot of developers are simply not producing enough rental units, and so our government has made it a priority to build them across the country. Then you have the home ownership piece, which is equally important. We need to make sure that the dream of home ownership stays alive and well.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>MORE: Canada offers abortion to U.S. women if Roe v. Wade is overturned<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">The government is planning to double the number of new homes built annually, from 200,000 to 400,000. How are you going to make that happen?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s important to look at this budget as a comprehensive strategy to tackle affordability issues, particularly around housing. Budget 2022 features investments that will go toward training more Canadians in the skilled trades, and provide money to create more apprenticeships, which will help build more homes. If you look at the ambitious targets for our immigration system this year\u2014we expect to welcome 401,000 new permanent residents\u2014the majority of those are skilled immigrants. They\u2019re coming in to address our labour-market shortages and help us literally build our economy.<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-sizes=\"auto\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1236485 size-full lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/JuneInterview1-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1500\" height=\"2036\"\/><\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">How much impact can the federal government have on its own?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s important that we aren\u2019t doing this alone. We need municipal governments to accelerate their processes for both affordable housing projects and middle-class housing. In order to do that, we\u2019re not just asking them to step up. We\u2019re stepping up ourselves, with a $4-billion Housing Accelerator Fund. It\u2019s important to have partners at the municipal level that facilitate quick approvals, and help open doors sooner for people living in the street and parks. People just want a more affordable place closer to where they work, or where they go to school.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>RELATED: Nowhere to buy\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">You spent some time on the West Coast this spring talking about your government\u2019s housing strategy. In April, Pierre Poilievre drew attention to a $4.8-million Vancouver home as one stark example of unaffordability. Another Conservative leadership candidate, Scott Aitchison, has talked about ending exclusionary zoning in big cities. How do their positions on housing differ from yours?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Mr. Poilievre doesn\u2019t have a position\u2014it\u2019s all gimmicks. If he was serious about homeownership help for Canadians, why did he vote against the First-Time Homebuyer Incentive? The Conservatives voted against the 2022 budget, which proposes the extension of the Rapid Housing Initiative and top-ups to the co-investment fund. Some don\u2019t like the Rental Construction Financing Initiative, which will build more than 71,000 homes across the country. Even within the caucus, one day they\u2019ll talk about how we should invest more in housing, and the next day they\u2019ll say the federal government shouldn\u2019t actually be in this space, and that we should just give all the money to the provinces and walk away. It\u2019s difficult to know where they stand. What\u2019s increasingly becoming clear is that, on that side of the House, they really don\u2019t have a deep understanding of the housing sector. They just don\u2019t get it. If they did, they would come up with really well-thought-out ideas.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ: Why is Pierre Poilievre so angry?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">The gap between home prices and income has grown drastically, particularly for new immigrants. How do you grapple with the fact that, for many new Canadians who are renters, buying a house is basically impossible?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s no doubt that it\u2019s becoming harder to access home ownership. That\u2019s why we\u2019re moving forward aggressively to deal with this. It\u2019s not just about helping first-time home buyers, although that\u2019s part of the mix. It\u2019s also not just about banning foreign ownership for two years, or ending blind bidding. It\u2019s all of the above. As the country with the fastest-growing population in the G7, we don\u2019t have enough housing supply for skilled immigrants who are coming in to help us grow our economy. It\u2019s not only a housing issue\u2014it\u2019s also an economic development issue. If we\u2019re able to lead a truly national effort to build more transit-oriented housing, to have more inclusionary zoning and to remove the barriers to building more supply\u2014and get it faster\u2014I believe we can come out successfully on the other end.<\/p>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">Supply seems to be the key word here.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Supply is a big part of this. We are now on track to build the first new stock of co-op buildings in 30 years\u20146,000 of them. We\u2019ve renewed the Rapid Housing Initiative for a third time, which will tack on another 6,000 homes. The money we\u2019re putting into core investment funds will produce another almost 23,000 new homes, and the Housing Accelerator Fund alone will produce 100,000 new homes by 2024. We\u2019re dealing with speculation, and we\u2019re putting in measures to help first-time home buyers. But we are certainly aware of the need to dramatically increase supply.<\/p>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">When you were a community organizer 18 years ago, you told the\u00a0<\/b><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\"><i data-stringify-type=\"italic\">Toronto Star\u00a0<\/i><\/b><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">you couldn\u2019t handle the life of a politician, and you didn\u2019t want to be front-and-centre. And yet here you are.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>I still don\u2019t see myself as a politician. I think this job is an extension of the grassroots community work that I was doing in Regent Park 20 years ago. It\u2019s just on a different stage.<\/p>\n<p><i data-stringify-type=\"italic\">This interview appears in the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/secure.macleans.ca\/W21ASHPM\">June issue of Maclean\u2019s<\/a> and has been edited for length and clarity.<\/i><\/p>\n<div class=\"under-article-widget-nl\">\n<p class=\"under-article-widget-title\">Looking for more?<\/p>\n<p class=\"under-article-widget-description\">Get the best of <em>Maclean<\/em>&#8216;s sent straight to your inbox. 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Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more News articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/politics\/ahmed-hussen-has-a-plan-to-solve-canadas-housing-crisis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Ahmed Hussen has a plan to solve Canada\u2019s housing crisis&#8221; Ahmed Hussen\u2019s first home in Canada was a social-housing unit on Hess Street in Hamilton that he shared with his cousin. He was only 16 years old then, a refugee who had fled Somalia during the civil war. By 2002, the same year he completed&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":441961,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/JuneInterview2-horiz-766x431.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[81958,128849,12156,32681],"class_list":["post-441960","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-affordable-housing","tag-ahmed-hussen","tag-housing","tag-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/441960","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=441960"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/441960\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/441961"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=441960"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=441960"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=441960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}