Third sector housing, an examination of third sector housing initiatives and a comparison of the private and non-profit rental markets in inner-city Winnipeg

• Main Author: Rewniak, Dwayne O. M.
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2007
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1993/1052

There is a growing awareness of the need for non-governmental sectors to step forward as the funding for federal and provincial social housing programs continue to be curtailed. Expectations are the highest in the third sector where many housing researchers believe that third sector housing organizations will help to bridge the poverty gap by providing additional affordable housing for Canada's growing number of households in core housing need. One of the main problems with this assumption, however, is that it is unlikely that these non-profit organizations have the funding capabilities required to produce this housing on their own. Therefore, if the third sector is to emerge as a major player in Canadian housing, it must integrate with the public and private sectors. The two main purposes of this practicum were to briefly examine third sector housing initiatives and their role in Canadian inner cities, and to compare Winnipeg's non-profit and private rental markets. The methodology consisted of a literature review of Canada's third sector and a neighbourhood and rental market analysis of four study areas in inner-city Winnipeg. The review of literature found that the gradual elimination of government funding for new social housing projects will likely result in the third and private sectors having to come up with new ideas and approaches to developing additional affordable housing. Similarly, in Winnipeg, a detailed analysis of the private and non-profit rental markets in the inner-city showed that private and non-profit housing partnerships are one way to solve the high vacancy problems of the private rental sector and to help stabilize inner-city decline in the process. The practicum concluded that partnerships alone are not enough. Additional third sector housing initiatives must be implemented if third sector housing organizations are to be significant players in Canada's future housing market. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)