GNWT home subsidy program tapped dry

DWANE WILKIN

Money for a home-ownership assistance programs fell short of demand this spring, forcing Housing Corporation officials to freeze funding to unmarried applicants.

“Demand placed on the program has required me to prioritize the applications, and my priority is particularly with families and people in public housing,” Peter Scott, Baffin regional director said.

Interest in the downpayment assistance program (DAP), part of the GNWT’s much heralded Plan 2000, proved especially popular among single residents this spring, because the level of assistance is tied to household income.

Assistance under the expanded DAP program was to be provided on a sliding scale from 5 per cent of the cost of a house to 70 per cent, with clients financing the balance through conventional bank mortgages.

“Of course most single incomes are low, so the assistance is very high,” said Scott.

Although the Housing Corp.’s total budget for capital spending in the Baffin region is $23 million, much of it was already committed to existing programs, including seniors’ facilities, home-improvement projects and other home-purchase assistance plans.

When it became obvious there wasn’t enough money to go around, Scott asked housing officers to prioritize new applications.

“The intent of the program is to service families and families in need that require our assistance,” said Scott. “Housing requirements for single people are not as great as for families, so they will receive lower priority.”

Some of the applications for assistance approved this spring were actually carried over from last year, people whose applications have been in limbo for six months or more.

While those in social housing, families and couples found themselves on the top of the list, unmarried and independent applicants, like travel agent Terri Chegwyn, were bumped.

“I said, ‘How can you do that? You approved me, my mortgage was approved and I went ahead and made an offer to buy a house, and now you’re leaving me high and dry,” Chegwyn said.

“My biggest beef is that because I’m single and able to support myself I don’t count.”

Among the Housing Corp.’s existing commitments are plans to build 37 new units in the communities this summer, at a cost of roughly $200,000 apiece.

“So there’s a fair chunk of change going into home ownership, particulary at the community level,” Scott said.

As the 1996 Housing Needs Survey indicates, severe overcrowding persists in many communities. Much of Plan 2000 assistance will therefore, be spoken for outside Iqaluit.

Pending the results of tenders for new home construction already approved by the Housing Corp., Scott said he expects to be able to find DAP money for up to 20 applicants from Iqaluit, and an additional 10-12 applicants from the communtiies.

“I’ve estimated that I’ll have, with the overall total budget, about $1 million left over for delivery in Iqaluit. And at this point that’s about all I can commit until I’ve got a better handle on tender prices, and we determine what kind of a surplus I can roll back into the DAP program,” said Scott.

The Housing Corp. has said it cannot afford to build any additional social housing. In 1993 the federal government withdrew funding of $50 million annually for new construction in the North.