BCBusiness

jULY/AUGUST 2018 BCBusiness 85 TRAVIS LUPICK/GEORGIA STRAIGHT with limited amenities—patronized by business travellers. "We are focused on that road warrior from Monday through Thursday," McAuley says. AHIP, which distributes income monthly in U.S. dollars, was delivering a yield of some 10 percent in May. "About 90 percent of the income we receive gets distributed back to the investors," McAuley explains. AHIP closed at $8.46 per unit on May 31, down 9 percent for the year. The business isn't exposed to Airbnb, McAuley says, because that service is concentrated in the top 25 markets and centred around major events: "We aren't downtown located; we aren't leisure- driven; we aren't event-driven." McAuley sees plenty of upside for AHIP. Since the Great Recession, the American lodging industry has expanded every month, with room demand outpacing abundant new supply, he says. The U.S. Federal Reserve Board and other economic forecast- ers are calling for gross domestic product to grow at least 2.5 percent this year. Still, AHIP takes a long-term, conserva- tive approach, McAuley says. For example, the —rm's capital structure ensures that its debt on properties is low compared to their value. "We're not buying hotels that we're going to pick up and renovate and ˜ip in two years," he says. "Over the long run, they're a good, solid investment." House plans The BC Housing Management Commission provides a di›erent kind of shelter—homes for British Columbians from a variety of income brackets. "BC Housing is not on a lot of people's radar screens, but we really are one of the largest developers in the province," says CEO Shayne Ramsay. The Crown corporation jumped from No. 67 to No. 36 on our list, thanks to new funding from the provincial government that will push revenue to a projected $1.28 billion in 2018¡19. In its service plan for that year, the target is about 3,500 new housing units, Ramsay notes. "Very few developers—I would risk to say probably none—develop as many units as the province and BC Housing do on an annual basis," he says. "There are more housing units under development and construction in British Columbia in the a›ordable/social housing —eld than in the rest of the country combined." BC Housing expects that in 2018¡19 it will help more than 111,600 households. Over the next decade, the province is investing almost $7.7 billion in housing, a move that will directly fund some 28,700 new units, Ramsay says. About $1.1 billion of that total will go toward renovating B.C.'s 60,000 existing non-pro¤it and social housing units, he adds. In its February budget, the provincial government launched HousingHub, a BC Housing division that will work with every- one from private developers and non-pro—ts to Indigenous organizations and faith- based groups to build a›ordable market rental and owner-purchased housing. "The HousingHub units w ill be seeking out those partnerships and target households that earn between $50,000 and $100,000," Ramsay says. "What we'll bring to those kinds of partnerships are things like access to land, low-cost project development ¤inancing, and work with them to identify other sources of —nancing as well, particularly now that the federal government is back in the business." For its —rst project, HousingHub teamed up with the B.C. Conference of the United Church of Canada to develop roughly 400 a›ordable rental units on four sites in Coquitlam, Nanaimo, Richmond and Vancouver. The church will establish a non- pro—t to manage the properties, but all four will share resources and revenue, Ramsay says. "By taking that portfolio approach, you're able to develop in locations where typically without subsidy, you couldn't build a›ordable rental housing." How far will BC Housing's e›orts go toward solving the housing a›ordability crisis? About 1,500 of its planned 28,700 units are for women and children leaving violent relationships, 750 for I nd igenou s people and another 4,500 for the homeless, Ramsay says. All of them come with long- term subsidies that didn't previously exist, so the province can provide round-the- clock support to help stabilize lives before people move to permanent affordable housing, he explains. BC Housing faces challenges, though: ¤inding the capacity to build all of its planned housing, and reassuring communities hostile to its e›orts. "We seem to be able to get access to the construction services we need, but it is getting more and more di§cult," Ramsay admits. Rising construction prices aren't helping. "One of the other components of the 2018 budget was an additional $75 million for projects in the pipeline to deal with some of those a›ordability issues and make sure we can still hit those a›ordability targets," Ramsay says. Meanwhile, not all municipalities have been receptive—witness recent protests in Maple Ridge against the corporation's proposed homeless housing there. "The message t hat we've been delivering is that these are people in your community," Ramsay says. Residents of such projects won't come from elsewhere, he points out, and they will be properly assessed and have 24/7 support. "Simply bringing them inside, isn't that a much better opportunity to make some di›erent choices than if you're still in a doorway or living by the bank of a river?" ¨ teNANt FIGHt bC Housing CEO shayne Ramsay faces opposition for projects that help the homeless

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