It may not appeal to every property owner, but land assemblies could be an avenue for sellers to get a decent price and contribute to the citysa国际传媒檚 housing needs.
They dot the real estate landscape in several Kelowna neighbourhoods. Realtor Clifford May has an assembly of seven properties at Richter Street and Rose Avenue a block from Kelowna General Hospital (KGH).
sa国际传媒淭heresa国际传媒檚 no denying wesa国际传媒檙e currently in a housing crisis,sa国际传媒� May said. sa国际传媒淲e have a complete lack of housing available in areas with large employers and other pockets where retirement-aged individuals would love to see other options that allow them to downsize.sa国际传媒�
May believes there is an increasing appetite for land assemblies from property owners and developers.
sa国际传媒淲e need the numbers to be economical so we can have a strategic exit for current owners to allow for the further development growth of the City of Kelowna. That way we have a proper economic entry strategy for developers.sa国际传媒�
Homeowners getting together to build value in their properties, potentially making them more attractive to a developer, is occurring in locations where the city would like to see it happen according to Divisional Director of Planning and Development Services Ryan Smith.
sa国际传媒淐lose to the college, if you drive around some of those blockssa国际传媒here is all sorts of land assembly in good spots. The more land for infill projects the easier it is to design a project to meet city bylaws. We donsa国际传媒檛 force land assemblies because sometimes property owners donsa国际传媒檛 want to sell.sa国际传媒�
May notes that incentives for developers to build are also important, particularly for Kelownasa国际传媒檚 rental market.
sa国际传媒淧urpose-built rentals seem to be the most favourable,sa国际传媒� he added. sa国际传媒淭hey would yield probably a better solution to what we are experiencing.sa国际传媒�
Smith said the city provides several incentives for purpose-built projects, covering density, height, parking and taxes. Other avenues are available through the provincial and federal government including the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).
In 2023, the federal government introduced legislation to remove the GST on new purpose-built rental housing, such as apartment buildings, student housing, and senior residences built as long-term rentals.
sa国际传媒淚t takes multiple layered incentives to make even market rental projects happen in this environment,sa国际传媒� Smith explained.
The rental market in Kelowna has been challenging over the past 20 years, with a persistent and severe shortage of purpose-built rental housing over that time according to the citysa国际传媒檚 Long Range Policy Planning Manager, James Moore.
sa国际传媒淭he best evidence of a healthy rental market is when your vacancy rate sits between three to five per cent,sa国际传媒� he said. sa国际传媒淲e have hit that target once or twice in 20 years.sa国际传媒�
He added that for the last 10 years, the vacancy rate has dropped below one per cent and sometimes fell to zero.
sa国际传媒淚n an under-supplied market, there are a lot of people fighting for very few units and prices go up. It also means people start making tough compromises about what they can afford to live in.sa国际传媒�
Moore said supporting more purpose-built rental housing is a key priority for the city. As Kelowna grows, he expects there will be more land assemblies and other development opportunities in the central areas of the city.
sa国际传媒淭hat is a reality and much more common in cities that mature. Development starts to see the opportunities in existing areas and how important they are to the evolution of a healthy community.sa国际传媒�
