Calgary Secondary Suites

[wgraham]

There has been some good discussion about the secondary suites lately.



If you are on twitter, I encourage you to check out the #suiteyyc feed. Lots of REIN members (especially Cody Ellis @codyellis) being very vocal and objective about the issues. I would love to see more people putting in their 2 cents!



A few articles for you:




Nenshi: City needs courage on suites





The Time has come for Secondary Suites in Calgary



The Calgary Homeless Foundation




Enjoy and please be politically active!

 

[wgraham]

Here is a great video from Mayor Nenshi explaining his stance. My one concern, and I think that this is just political posturing, is that he is against absentee landlords and would like to see owner occupied suites only legalized. I don't see the reasoning in this and I also don't think it would be enforceable but I would love to hear the argument.





Again, REIN members and investors NEED to be actively involved in this discussion.

 

[RussellWestcott]

I agree with Wade, this is a very important topic for all property owners and REIN members. Because the decisions that Calgary makes will impact many other regions in Alberta. Many municipalities will look to Calgary as the lead on this.



This is ground zero, and our opportunity to make a stand on what we want.

 

[Thomas Beyer]

[quote user=wgraham] I would love to see more people putting in their 2 cents!


Any issue has two sides:



Benefit of 2nd suites:

a) more available units

b) add'l income stream for home owner

c) lower rents overall due to more supply



Drawbacks of secondary suites:

a) higher vacancies (for those that own existing homes or apartment buildings)

b) lower rents overall due to more supply

c) add'l cars, frequently ugly, in streets

d) higher density / more people in the neighborhood

e) potential for more crime

f) many non-compliant suites with fire code and safety issues



So overall, not a clear answer !



Personally, I am against secondary suites, but I can see both sides clearly. I am against because many neighborhoods were built for single family / low density .. and now introducing secondary suites into homes that were built 20, 30 or 60+ years ago doesn't fit the character of said neighborhoods, i.e. might even lower property values in some cases. Some folks clearly would not prefer that their neighbor in a neighborhood with $1M homes now is renting his 3BR suite with 3 add'l (rusty) cars on the (now clogged) cul-de-sac !!



I think allowing people to apply for it, with neighborhood and fire code/safety code approval, is a good compromise, like any new development in an existing area !

 

[wgraham]

[quote user=ThomasBeyer][quote user=wgraham] I would love to see more people putting in their 2 cents!
Personally, I am against secondary suites, but I can see both sides clearly. I am against because many neighborhoods were built for single family / low density .. and now introducing secondary suites into homes that were built 20, 30 or 60+ years ago doesn't fit the character of said neighborhoods, i.e. might even lower property values in some cases. Some folks clearly would not prefer that their neighbor in a neighborhood with $1M homes now is renting his 3BR suite with 3 add'l (rusty) cars on the (now clogged) cul-de-sac !!



I think allowing people to apply for it, with neighborhood and fire code/safety code approval, is a good compromise, like any new development in an existing area !




Of course you are against suites....they compete directly with apartment buildings



Yes zoning was set many years ago but times have changed and so must the city unless we want unruly urban sprall and higher taxes!



I don't think we will see suites popping up all over the place as you suggest. If you live in a high end neighbourhood you more than likely don't need a rental suite to offset you costs. And what stops you from renting it out as a rooming house if you wanted to anyway? Nothing.



As for parking, you have no current control over how many cars your neighbour has as an owner so what is the big stink if he is a renter? Personally I would rather deal with a land lord than the city to help resolve the issue.



There are certainly two sides to this issue and I too can see both! But one sides seems quite emotional too me.



But what I do like is that Nenshi is engaging the community and giving everyone a voice.



Yes if they legalize suites we may end up with slightly lower rents for a while but I doubt it! We already have the suites....we are just legalizing them! I don't think you will see them popping up all over the city!

 

[Thomas Beyer]

Secondary suites compete with all rental properties .. so it does affect any landlord, such as many REIN members that own properties today.



Essentially, it turns SINGLE family homes into DOUBLE family homes .. and many neighborhoods or houses are not designed for it, for example parking !!

 

[bizaro86]

The big advantage of increasing the legalization of suites is that it will pull more of the existing suites into the "legal" realm.



Then the city can do things like enforce standards for parking, egress, etc. I personally wouldn't have an issue with suites in my (R1 zoned) neighbourhood, as long as the parking wasn't excessive. If they mandated 2 offstreet stalls per dwelling (like a double garage and 2 extra parking stalls on a pad onto the alley) that would work.



I also would like to see safety codes enforced, although that's more of a basic human issue for me, since safety of suites doesn't affect me personally.

 

[RedlineBrett]

[quote user=ThomasBeyer]

Essentially, it turns SINGLE family homes into DOUBLE family homes .. and many neighborhoods or houses are not designed for it, for example parking !!





The reason the secondary suite initiative is gaining steam in Calgary is because the societal costs of homelessness and urban sprawl are outweighing the cultrual benefits of keeping these older R1 neighborhoods from being redeveloped. To say these older neighborhoods weren't designed for it is just another way of saying they are obsolete.



Allowing suites gives developers and home builders economic incentives to add inner-city inventory to their portfolios by reducing the holding costs. It also adds much needed supply to the bottom end of the rental spectrum. The two taken together are important steps towards moving Calgary foward.

 

[housingrental]

Calgary vs Waterloo

A tale of two cities