Executives of two of Toronto’s community land trusts say they want more in the city’s 2025 budget for a fund they believe is essential to tackling the housing affordability crisis.
Created in 2021, the Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition (MURA) program provides money to non-profit housing organizations to purchase existing residential properties to help preserve them as affordable housing long-term.
In 2024, the city of Toronto granted a record $102 million through the program, helping housing providers purchase 19 properties and preserve over 700 rental homes from price hikes.
But things are less clear for 2025.
Though the city has increased its own base funding for the program, bringing the total available to $30.5 million for 2025, the bulk of the MURA budget typically comes from the federal and provincial governments and is negotiated throughout the year, according to Coun. Gord Perks (Parkdale—High Park).
Coun. Perks said the city remains in negotiation with other levels of government to add to the budget for 2025.
But while Zack Bradley, co-executive director of the Kensington Market Community Land Trust acknowledged more funding may come through, he said the city should put more of its own money for the program in the 2025 budget, given the program’s success and the political uncertainty at both upper levels of government.
“The affordability crisis isn’t solved. It’s getting worse,” said Bradley.
“I’d rather see the city divest money from, say, a police budget or other areas of the budget [to support the MURA program].”
The success of MURA so far
When it comes to tackling the housing crisis, executives of five community housing providers that spoke with TorontoToday said the MURA program offers exceptional value for money compared to building new affordable housing.
Whereas one new unit of affordable housing can cost the city as much as $600,000 to build, the MURA program provides non-profit organizations with up to $200,000 per unit to purchase existing properties, said Bradley.
Money through the program helps housing providers get a mortgage from a bank or credit union to purchase properties that may have otherwise been snapped up by real estate investment trusts (REITs) or for-profit landlords which raise rent prices, he said.
The program requires MURA-funded organizations to keep the units affordable for 99-years.
Bradley said it’s essential that non-profits are enabled to purchase these properties because they form the backbone of the city’s existing affordable rental housing stock.
“Once those get owned by a REIT, it’s really hard to then bring those [rent prices] back down,” he said.
18 homes lost for each new one built
In 2023, Woodgreen Community Services received more than $6 million through the program to help purchase a 52-unit apartment building in Parkdale, according to Mwarigha, the charity’s vice president of housing growth.
Under their city contract, the housing provider must maintain rents within the building at 80 per cent of average market rent city-wide.
Based on the city’s guidelines, bachelor units at WoodGreen’s property average about $1,150 — $900 less per month than what similarly sized apartments were rented for on average in the third quarter of 2024, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board.
Andrea Adams, executive director of non-profit housing provider St. Clare’s, said that building new affordable housing is important, but that preserving existing units through MURA is essential.
Without it, building new is akin to “treading water” with the amount of affordable housing, she said.
Between 2011 and 2021, an estimated 18 lower-rent market homes were lost for each new affordable rental house built, according to a city report.
Money for MURA
Coun. Perks said that city council is behind MURA. That’s why, he said, the city has boosted base funding for the program from $10 million to $12.5 million for 2025.
For next year, that $12.5 million will be added to an existing $18 million leftover from the 2024 budget, bringing the total to $30.5 million, according to Coun. Perks.
The city’s contribution is scheduled to increase again for 2026 and beyond to $20 million per year, he added.
But while Bradley welcomed the news of additional funding, he said it remains modest given the scale of the housing crisis. At about $200,000 per unit, the amount budgeted for 2025 will save just 150-180 units, he said.
In an emailed statement, Chiyi Tam, executive director of the Chinatown Community Land Trust said she, too, believes the amount the city has proposed for 2025 is “laughable” compared to the sum the city is spending to waive fees to incentivize private developers to build new homes.
In November, city council approved a new program that encourages developers to build housing by cutting taxes and fees. The program is budgeted to cost the city nearly $460 million in foregone revenue.
Banking on the feds?
Adrian Dingle, director of housing development for Raising the Roof, said that though the MURA program is essential, he’s not alarmed by the amount the city has put in their 2025 budget for the program.
Dingle said that in recent years the city has effectively negotiated with other levels of government to secure additional MURA funding, and he is optimistic the same will happen this year, too.
But while Bradley applauded the city’s efforts to secure increased funding, he said relying on other levels of government comes with risks.
In April 2024, the federal government announced a $1.5 billion fund to support programs like MURA, but Bradley said there have been no updates on the program’s roll-out since then.
“No one knows when it’s going to be launched. No one knows how much Toronto’s going to get,” he said.
Bradley said time is of the essence.
Older landlords are dying or getting out of the business, which increases the number of properties on the market, he said.
“We can’t build ourselves out of this crisis.”
