2010.01.21 – London Free Press

For more information on this announcement, please visit www.cmhc.ca/en/corp/nero/nere/2010/2010-01-20-1200.cfm

Student housing receives boost from feds
By MARIKA MOTIWALLA, Special to the Free Press

Improving the quality and quantity of student housing across Canada is the goal of a new mortgage loan-insurance offer by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.

The federal government and the federal crown corporation Wednesday announced the government will help finance loans of up to 85% of the property value for the construction, purchase or refinancing of housing built for students on or off campuses across Canada though a CMHC laon insurance program for multi-unit student housing.

Insurance premiums for the program vary, depending on the loan-to-value ratio of the property, from 1.75% of the loan to 4.5%.

The move comes at a time when need for student housing is expected to grow because of forecast enrolment increases and a higher number of international students attending schools in the country.

"(This) announcement is good news and will help developers in Canada respond to the housing needs of students," said Ray Stanton, president of London Property Corp., a company with student housing rentals in London and elsewhere.

"This will be welcomed by financial and educational institutions and developers," said London West Conservative MP Ed Holder, who made the announcement in London on behalf of Human Resources and Skills Development Minister Diane Finley, minister responsible for the CMHC.

Holder said the move should result in more multi-unit buildings independent of houses, creating more standard housing for students.

There's enough space to build in London, and with both the University of Western Ontario and Fanshawe College based in the city, there's demand for more student housing, he said.

The hope is that more and better living options for students will result, Holder said.

The help from the government will attract more people to build student housing, Stanton predicted.

At UWO, every first-year student is guaranteed a place to live on campus in the school's student residences.

Holder said he hopes the announcement will make it easier to offer students appropriate housing after that first year.

"Our government is dedicated to meeting the increased demand for student housing across the country," he said.