Luxury studios are not the answer to the housing crisis.
After recently having a hefty conversation with a couple friends who are currently apartment hunting, I started watching and reading a lot more about housing and different ways the current housing crisis can be solved.
This got me thinking: is what Canadians are doing for the housing crisis actually beneficial? Or is the country taking some problematic steps in solving this problem?
One type of living accommodation I see more and more of is luxury apartments. There are plenty of existing, and up and coming, luxury apartments around downtown Montreal, and a lot of them surround our downtown campus. They’re usually skyrise buildings built in the last couple of decades, promising more apartments while using “luxury” as an excuse to up the prices.
However, these luxury high-rises are not necessarily the answer to the lack of housing. While they provide hundreds of new units, I noticed that they restrict access to their new accommodations with two factors: size and cost.
Younger generations who struggle to afford housing are usually separated into two groups: students and young professionals. The students usually search for places with roommates where multiple people can share a common space, having their own private rooms while splitting the costs. On the other hand, new professionals seek apartments with a couple of rooms for themselves, for their hobbies, and for social hangouts.
Luxury apartment complexes don’t really suit either of these two larger demographics, as most of the luxury apartments offered within a decent price range are studios. It defeats the purpose of bringing down costs and is impractical for someone wanting to invite friends over or have roommates.
And of course, with the word “luxury” come costs. Developers rent out hundreds of small luxury apartments for thousands of dollars to try to get their money back and offer comforts most dwellers appreciate, but don’t really need.
Unfortunately, there is no single solution to the complex problem of the housing crisis. However, a few alternatives are offered.
When comparing current construction costs of highrise buildings with past costs, the huge selling price makes sense, which draws the need to look at more affordable alternatives. When building two to five-storey apartment buildings, developers can offer larger apartment sizes at cheaper costs. Although it forces slightly more land to be used, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. We can encourage better changes in the way we build by reviewing outdated building codes and finding the best ways to build.
While it is important to not downplay planning policies and public opinions around the housing crisis, it is also important to highlight other, lesser-known factors that feed this problem. It’s very easy to forget about the necessity of mid-rise apartment buildings and to solely concentrate on high-rises, and even suburban family houses. But single family suburbia is not the only alternative to 40-storey apartment buildings.
