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Housing authority reviews procedures

Controversial waitlist process gets second look

By Andrew Mitchell

An online survey on proposed changes to Whistler Housing Authority policies will remain open until Dec. 15, but the board of directors will have a chance to evaluate the comments made at four round table meetings and results from an earlier e-mail survey this Monday.

At issue are proposed changes to the waitlist process, the implementation of new Standard Charge Terms, property transfers to heirs, and the eligibility of local businesses to purchase units as staff housing.

The review of WHA policies got underway in August following a contentious public meeting to discuss changes to the WHA’s standard charge terms.

In the past, the appreciation formula for the majority of price-controlled WHA homes was tied to the Vancouver housing price index, which exploded in recent years with annual double digit growth. The average price of a Vancouver home in 2001 was between $360,000 and $420,000, climbing to between $600,000 and $660,000 through 2005.

The result was that WHA homes, created as an affordable option for residents, were being priced beyond reach of many Whistler employees. Due to the long WHA waitlist and limited supply, other residents were pressured to buy at the maximum resale value.

To address the issue, the WHA brought in a new policy that tied the appreciation rate of all new WHA homes and all homes tied to the Vancouver market that were sold after an implementation date to the Canadian Consumer Core Price Index, which is considered a more accurate measure of inflation.

While the change of Standard Charge Terms was the main topic discussed at the meeting, it became apparent that WHA owners and people on the waitlist had other issues as well. That prompted the WHA to begin a review of all policies and procedures, with the input of the public.

According to Marla Zucht, general manager of the WHA, the proposed policy changes on the online survey reflect comments made by the public at the round table meetings and in response to the e-mail survey.

“The round tables were excellent, 100 community members came out with a lot of energy and ideas,” she said. “We also got about 110 surveys completed, and we’re compiling that information for our board.

“What is on the website are the proposed changes, and what happens will depend on the public feedback and the board.”

Among the policy changes being considered:

• Retaining the “three strikes” policy for employees on the waitlist, with three new conditions — the home has to sell for the maximum resale value, the maximum resale value cannot exceed the amount of the applicants’ mortgage approval, and the home cannot be in substandard condition (beyond regular wear and tear).

• Changing the waitlist eligibility to include anyone who is employed 20 hours a week on average, eliminating the requirement that applicants be in Whistler for a minimum 12 months.

• Retaining the current eligibility rules for people who own market homes, but allowing special considerations based on housing affordability.

• Exploring opportunities for businesses to purchase WHA units as employee rental housing in future WHA housing projects.

• Changing the rental restriction that does not allow owners to be away for more than one year cumulatively, requiring owners to occupy the unit for six months plus one day each year while also allowing owners planning to be away more than one year to apply for an exception.

• Eliminating the five per cent appreciation cap on the new standard charge terms tied to the consumer index, while allowing owners to change from the Vancouver index to the consumer index (with legal assistance).

• Creating a system where WHA owners can transfer their property to their heirs — providing they are of legal age and do not already own a property in Whistler. If they do own market housing, they must sell that unit within six months to take possession of a WHA home, or sell the WHA home.

The proposed policy changes come as the WHA waitlist has reached a new high of 558 applicants.

However, despite the length of the list, four WHA homes sold to employees that were not on the waitlist through the months of August, September and October when owners could not find buyers on the waitlist — a first for the WHA. As well, several homes sold below the maximum resale price, which was also a new development.

The WHA said those unusual sales were the result of people on the waitlist passing on opportunities in order to bid on proposed WHA housing units at Rainbow, the Shoestring Lodge, Lakecrest and the athletes’ village. Another reason given was the high cost of some homes after being tied to the Vancouver market.

In total, 16 WHA homes were sold from August to the end of October. According to Zucht the sellers included absentee owners who were pulling out equity in their homes, owners who were purchasing other WHA units, and owners purchasing homes in Pemberton and Squamish.

There were no home sales in November and none are slated for December.

“I think the fact we were going through a policy review might have stirred up a little activity, at least as far as absentee owners were concerned, and now it’s gone very quiet,” said Zucht. “I think a lot of people are still waiting in anticipation of new projects that are expected to come on, and will have a close look at those before they make any decision to buy.”

The Lakecrest development, which has just four WHA units, has been approved, and both the Rainbow subdivision and Shoestring Lodge redevelopment have been through third reading.