On Wednesday, the Government of British Columbia announced housing supply targets for the second group of municipalities, growing the list of local governments that have received targets to 20.
In late-April, the Province announced a group of 20 municipalities, but appears to have since split the group of 20 into two separate cohorts, with the latter group of 10 now expected to be issued housing target orders this summer.
This second group totals 55,478 homes and represents a 41% increase in overall housing to be built over what was projected based on historical trends, the Province says.
The 10 municipalities announced today, as well as their annual and five-year housing supply targets, are as follows.
Central Saanich
- Year 1: 77
- Year 2: 167
- Year 3: 278
- Year 4: 416
- Year 5: 588
- Year 1: 659
- Year 2: 1,404
- Year 3: 2,280
- Year 4: 3,329
- Year 5: 4,594
- Year 1: 581
- Year 2: 1,190
- Year 3: 1,840
- Year 4: 2,545
- Year 5: 3,320
Esquimalt
- Year 1: 81
- Year 2: 185
- Year 3: 325
- Year 4: 510
- Year 5: 754
- Year 1: 1,363
- Year 2: 2,856
- Year 3: 4,545
- Year 4: 6,496
- Year 5: 8,774
- Year 1: 612
- Year 2: 1,284
- Year 3: 2,045
- Year 4: 2,925
- Year 5: 3,954
- Year 1: 783
- Year 2: 1,618
- Year 3: 2,533
- Year 4: 3,552
- Year 5: 4,703
- Year 1: 90
- Year 2: 181
- Year 3: 274
- Year 4: 369
- Year 5: 468
Surrey
- Year 1: 4,233
- Year 2: 8,872
- Year 3: 14,120
- Year 4: 20,180
- Year 5: 27,256
White Rock
- Year 1: 189
- Year 2: 387
- Year 3: 596
- Year 4: 821
- Year 5: 1,067
These targets are effective as of July 1, 2024 and end on June 30, 2029.
Based on the group of 20 municipalities announced in April, this means the third cohort will consist of Colwood, Langley, Mission, New Westminster, North Cowichan, North Saanich, Port Coquitlam, Prince George, View Royal, and West Kelowna.
The first group consisted of Abbotsford, Delta, the District of North Vancouver, Kamloops, Oak Bay, Port Moody, Saanich, Vancouver, Victoria, and West Vancouver.
The housing targets come as part of the Housing Supply Actannounced by Premier David Eby immediately after stepping into the role in November 2022.
The targets — issued in the form of a Ministerial Housing Target Order (HTO) — include those on an annual basis as well as a cumulative total, the latter of which represents 75% of the Province's housing needs estimated for the municipality.
Once the orders come into effect, the Province will monitor the municipalities and their progress towards the targets over the course of the five years. Local governments will be responsible for submitting an annual progress report to the Province. An initial progress report is expected at both the midway point and conclusion of the first year, with progress reports expected once a year for the remaining four years.
If a municipality is not meeting its target, the Province can appoint an advisor to conduct a review to identify why the target has not been met and potentially issue a directive, such as ordering the municipal government to amend or enact a given bylaw or permit.
The first group of 10 municipalities were announced on May 31, 2023, but their housing targets were not announced until several months later, in September 2023. The 30 municipalities announced to date were chosen from a larger list of 47 municipalities, but it is expected that the Province will issue housing supply targets to 68-80 municipalities by 2026 or 2027, according to the Province's documents.
For the first cohort that received housing supply targets last year, their midway point occured earlier this year and all 10 municipal governments provided updates on their progress, with many currently on pace to miss their target for the first year.
