The residential real estate market in Canada is worth $4.8 trillion and it is doubling every ten years. This rapid increase on the market occurs because Canada has a high population growth rate. For example, the current rate is 1.2% annually while the annual rate of the US is 0.7%. Interestingly, there exists untapped potential in the Canadian real estate market, i.e., laneway homes. A laneway home is a residential structure constructed on the area where a garage would be. Building it on top of the garage is possible as well. The mandatory requirements for building this home include access to a laneway. The property has to be 7 to 15 meters wide and parking space for at least one car is necessary. Laneway homes are an ideal choice for investment. Here is some additional information on these time-tested real estate investing opportunities.
The Practicability of Laneway Houses
The untapped potential of laneway houses in Canada results from the skepticism that some people have about them. More specifically, they feel that the building of these homes en masse is an impractical and unsustainable undertaking. However, that is not the case. For example, Toronto has more than 2,400 unutilized laneway spaces. At the same time, the city faces a major housing shortage pushing the prices of houses upwards. Did you know that the average price of a detached home went up by 8.5%? Therefore, laneway homes can help ease this shortage of housing properties in Toronto. Easing this shortage would result in a reduction in the prices of homes as well. Therefore, everyone wins when real estate developers tap into laneway houses.
Proof That These Opportunities Work
Developers in Toronto may be skeptical about laneway homes. However, other areas of the country have tested this opportunity and it works. Vancouver is one of them. This city has 309,418 houses with the average household holding two people. Laneway homes helped shaped Vancouver’s real estate landscape. For example, the city adopted by-laws in 2009 that paved the way for the construction of laneway homes. Construction of over 500 laneway houses occurred between that time and 2018. These houses now provide shelter for 500 households. That amounts to nearly 1,000 people given that the average household holds two people. It is possible for Toronto to achieve this high rate of success in its housing market, i.e. if it constructs homes in its 2,400 unutilized laneway spaces.
Future Prospects of these Opportunities
The statistics show that laneway houses would help Canada tremendously especially cities in Toronto. However, studying the future prospects of these housing initiatives is necessary as well. In other words, is this renewed interest in laneway houses sustainable? Well, experts in the housing market believe that it is. For example, homeowners are speaking positively about this real estate opportunity. They feel excited about small hubs springing up all over the city without disrupting the general layout of current homes. Architects are optimistic about these time-tested opportunities as well. They feel that building these homes would require a limited addition of resources. This feeling arises from the fact that the infrastructure that is necessary for their construction exists already.
