Expert says CBRM housing crisis not over, despite building boom
CBU researcher says not enough new residential units are affordable
Cape Breton Regional Municipality says just over 900 new residential units have been built or permitted in the last two years, but one expert says that does not mean the housing crisis is over.
CBRM staff say more than 100 of the new units are deemed affordable.
Cape Breton University professor and housing expert Catherine Leviten-Reid says they are welcome, but with so many vulnerable people in the community, all of the new construction should have been designated for low-income renters.
"Considering there are about 1,200 households on our public housing waitlist, considering we have a Pallet shelter, considering we have a [homeless] shelter in downtown Sydney that's full almost every night, I would say that all those units should be affordable," she said.
"The crisis absolutely isn't over. This is not just about a supply issue. It's about the right kind of supply for people who are in need in our communities."
A provincial assessment in 2023 found CBRM needed to build at least 1,000 new housing units.
And some researchers said the estimated need for affordable housing in some parts of CBRM has been woefully underestimated.
CBRM planning director Tyson Simms told council Tuesday that reduced red tape under the new planning document, called CBRM Forward, and money from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund have combined to drive a steadily increasing number of new housing units over the last four years.
CBRM got $11.4 million in federal funding to provide incentives for developers, build an online permitting system and provide pre-approved housing designs to speed up the process.
In exchange, the municipality committed to building 1,010 housing units by the end of this year.
With 906 permits issued or units under construction at the end of 2025, CBRM is making progress, Simms said.
"The municipality is now close to meeting 90 per cent of its Housing Accelerator Fund target, with one year remaining in the program.
"Permit volumes have increased by approximately 13 per cent, estimated construction values have more than doubled and net housing production has nearly tripled, increasing from 187 units in 2022 to 536 units in 2025."
Leviten-Reid said federal, provincial and municipal governments need to rethink their housing regulations and targets to include more affordable options.
She said the current thinking is that increasing supply will make more lower-rent units available.
"That logic really isn't playing out in practice as far as providing units to people in need in our communities," Leviten-Reid said.
Investment Property Owners Association of Cape Breton secretary Tim Fraser said the drastic reduction in international students has probably had a big effect on CBRM's housing market.
He said fewer people are looking for a place to live now and until last year, the vast majority of renters were coming from other countries.
"I used to be swamped," he said. "I used to have pages of emails. Take me two or three days to go through them all.
"I just rented a house. I may have had a total of 35 [emails] and out of the 35, I want to say maybe about 25 of them, 26 of them, were locals."
Non-residential construction also rising
Simms said 78 per cent of the new residential units have been built in areas with existing municipal infrastructure, such as sewer and water and roads, which helps boost tax revenue without increasing costs.
According to CBRM data, non-residential construction has also risen dramatically, with permits increasing from 111 in 2022 to 155 last year.
Over that time, the estimated value of non-residential construction has also nearly tripled.
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