Area affordable housing wait list at it's lowest in 13 years

Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association (CNW Group/Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association (ONPHA))

The good news is there were fewer households in Nipissing waiting for affordable housing at the end of 2015.

In fact, it’s at it’s lowest level in the past 13 years.

However, there are still 877 households waiting for rent-geared-to-income housing.

That information is included in the Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association‘s final report on households waiting for so-call RGI housing.

2014 saw the most households in Nipissing, with 1,185 on the wait list.

Meantime, the average wait time locally is 1.73 years.

Provincially, the average is nearly 4 years.

Across Ontario, there’s 171,360 households waiting for affordable housing, which is up about 45,000 in just over a decade.

This is the Association’s final report as RGI housing is no longer the only form of housing assistance available with local governments implementing new and innovative programs.

Officials say the locally-responsive initiatives reflect community need, but prevent cross-jurisdicational comparisons.