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Regional Incentives

Home Regional Government Budget and FinancialRegional Incentives

The Regional Municipality of Durham supports redevelopment projects. These programs and policies promote growth in intensification areas.

At Home Incentive Program (AHIP)

The At Home Incentive Program (AHIP) supports the development of affordable housing in Durham Region. This is done through direct funding support and by expediting planning approvals.

To be eligible, projects must provide a minimum of five affordable housing units and may include:

New construction.
Conversion of non-residential buildings to purpose built rental housing.
Addition of new affordable buildings/units to existing sites/buildings.
Community housing redevelopment that increases the supply of affordable housing units.

This program supports the Region’s commitment to initiate the development of 1,000 new affordable rental housing units by 2024. This commitment is outlined in At Home in Durham, the Durham Housing Plan 2014 to 2024 and the Master Housing Strategy.

We are now accepting proposals to build purpose-built affordable rental housing in Durham Region. This is the second year of the At Home Incentive Program; the first Call for Applications in 2022 having led to a $7.45 million commitment to support two affordable housing projects.

For this year, the AHIP has $5.5 million in funding available, and the deadline to apply is 4 p.m. on Wednesday, December 20, 2023.

What is the At Home Incentive Program (AHIP)?

The AHIP provides capital grants to eligible residential housing developments and streamlines the approval process for planning applications that include affordable housing units.

Funding is through a forgivable capital loan secured against the title. A portion of this loan will be forgiven, as long as the project complies with the Municipal Capital Housing Facilities and Contribution Agreement with the Region.

What is the eligibility?

The project must be located within Durham Region.

Non-profit housing providers and for-profit developers are eligible to apply. Applicants must have experience in residential housing developments. They must also have experience operating rental housing or are partnered with an experienced organization that will provide these services.

Projects will be evaluated on:

How it responds to community need, including targeted groups, unit size, location and affordability.
Depth of affordability.
Period of affordability.
Construction and operational costs of the project.
Opportunity for stacking with other housing incentive programs.
Number and percentage of units that will be affordable.
Access to transit, community amenities and services.
Energy efficiency and sustainability.
Accessibility, including barrier-free designs, elevators and other features.
Project planning, including obtaining required development permissions, financing and development schedule.
Applicant’s financial capacity, and experience with rental housing development and management.

Visit the Program Guidelines for more information.

What is the application process?

There will be a Call for Applications that will be sent to organizations listed on the Registry. Please sign up for the Registry to be notified for the Call for Applications.

This year the Call for Applications was on Thursday, September 21 and the deadline to apply is 4 p.m. on Wednesday, December 20, 2023.

The review process will take approximately three months from the closing date of the Call for Applications. Applicants will be notified if their application is recommended to Regional Council.

Applicants will be required to provide:

Project details.
Information on all organizations involved.
Plans for community outreach.
Development and management qualifications.
A business model that demonstrates financial feasibility of the project.
Other information as may be required by the Region.

Visit the Program Guidelines for more information.

What is affordable rental housing?

Durham Region’s Municipal Housing Facilities By-law defines affordable rental housing as units with monthly occupancy costs that are less than or equal to the average market rent.

The average market rent is taken from the Rental Market Survey, published annually by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). If CMHC has not published an average market rent for the unit type or municipality, the Region will provide average monthly rents for affordable housing.

Program guidelines

The At Home Incentive Program Guidelines provide information to assist private and non-profit organizations that want to partner with the Region to create new affordable purpose-built rental housing. These Guidelines include information about available resources, eligibility criteria, and the application and approval process for the At Home Incentive Program. This information will assist organizations to complete their Application Forms.

Past reports

Regional Revitalization Program (RRP)

Redevelopment projects with specific challenges might get financial assistance. They might also get in-kind servicing through our Regional Revitalization Program (RRP). The RRP is application based. Eligible projects will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Durham Regional Council must approve them.

For more details on the RRP, including project eligibility, please contact our Financial Planning Division at 905-668-7711 extension. 3369.

Redevelopment credits under the development charge by-laws

The development charge (DC) credit applies to buildings ready for demolition or redevelopment. You might get the credit even if DCs were never paid on the original building.

For more information, contact us.

Development charge exemptions

Our development charge (DC) by-laws have some exemptions, including:

Parking structures.
Agricultural uses and farm buildings, including a dwelling for seasonal farm workers.
Industrial building expansions.
Hospitals.
Buildings on lands owned by and used for:
- The Region of Durham or a local board thereof.
- A board as defined in Section 1 (1) of the Education Act.
- A local area municipality or a local board thereof in the Region.
- A college or university building (buildings must be for their own use).

For more information, contact us.

Intensification servicing policy

Any residential built-up may need sanitary sewer upgrades. You may apply for funding to upgrade your sewer. This applies to housing units if:

They are in an existing built-up area.
They need sanitary sewage work. If that work is not reflected in the development charge study.
All local works are funded by the developer.

For more information, contact us.