Success Stories
More Habitat homes for more Black families
At Habitat for Humanity Canada, we know that access to homeownership transforms lives. However, homeownership in Canada is not equal. Black people in Canada have experienced systemic barriers and discrimination that has contributed to a disproportionate lack of homeownership opportunities.
Many Black people living in Canada have been unable to access the benefits that come with owning a home, including the ability to attain social and financial stability, build equity and transform futures.
Canada launches housing applications for Black-led organizations
Everyone in Canada deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, launched applications for funding dedicated to building housing for Black households through the National Housing Co-Investment Fund.
The $50 million carve-out will build upon the various investments and initiatives undertaken by the Government of Canada to support Black Canadians facing housing needs, as well as an additional $40 million in joint funding by the Government of Canada and Habitat for Humanity Canada to support homeownership for Black families across the country.
Supporting Black Canadian Communities Initiative
The Supporting Black Canadian Communities Initiative (SBCCI) is a federal grants and contributions initiative. SBCCI was created in 2019 to:
- celebrate and share knowledge about People of African descent’s contributions in Canada
- build capacity in vibrant Black communities across Canada
- reflect Black voices in policies and programs that affect their lives
- remove barriers related to anti-Black racism and other systemic inequities
SBCCI provides funding to help Black-led organizations build foundational infrastructure within Black communities.
Canada supports housing for 200 Black Canadian families
Everyone in Canada deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, launched applications for funding dedicated to building housing for Black households through the National Housing Co-Investment Fund.
The $50 million carve-out will build upon the various investments and initiatives undertaken by the Government of Canada to support Black Canadians facing housing needs, as well as an additional $40 million in joint funding by the Government of Canada and Habitat for Humanity Canada to support homeownership for Black families across the country.
Canada’s ‘community land trust renaissance’: How people are taking control of their housing
Six weeks after Sydney Creighton moved into her new 350-square-foot studio apartment in Toronto’s Kensington Market, she still couldn’t believe it was hers.
“Every night I would look at my cat and go, ‘Oh, my God, I hope the real tenant doesn’t come home and kick us out,’” Creighton says with a laugh.
Grandma Syd, as people affectionately call her, is a fixture of the Market. With her cropped silver hair, tattoos, and penchant for leopard print, Creighton is not your typical grandma. She’s charismatic and cool, blending in with the young, edgy crowd that frequents this area. You get the sense that she’d win in a fight, even at the age of 75.
Can collective ownership solve housing affordability? These Black communities in N.S. are working on it
Community land trust concept traces its roots to civil rights movement in American south. Lynn Jones wanted to preserve the spirit of the Truro, N.S., neighbourhood known as “The Marsh” — once a thriving community of Black families, most of whom have moved away over the years.
She and her family members each owned a small plot of land in The Marsh and, over time, Jones began to purchase land from her relatives as people left. But she hadn’t figured out what to do afterward.
“I was not selling to developers for them to reap the benefits of a traditional African Nova Scotian community and there be nothing left for the community,” she said in a recent interview.