Student Housing Affordability Analysis & Policy Development in Mississauga, ON

The project focuses on analyzing public housing data and field research data on student housing in the City Mississauga to develop evidence-based policy recommendations designed to improve student housing affordability and availability municipally. With rising costs of living, post-secondary students face significant challenges in securing safe, secure, and affordable housing on/near campus. This project aims to assess public housing data, analyzing field research data collected by HOUSE, identifying students housing needs and challenges in the housing markets, and propose data-driven recommendations for municipal policy improvements. Researchers will utilize their knowledge of data analysis, urban planning, and economic principles to evaluate housing trends and affordability metrics. The goal is to develop and research report and provide actionable insights that can inform local policymakers and stakeholders in creating more affordable housing solutions for students. This analysis will contribute to a broader understanding of housing affordability issues in urban settings and support efforts to enhance student living conditions. Research activities will include: Analyzing publicly available housing data from the CMHC, and over 32,500 data points collected through field research by HOUSE; Conducting cross-referential and regressive analyses of student housing data to identify student in Core Housing Need in Mississauga; Developing a comprehensive research report which maps key insights and evidence-based recommendations based on existing municipal policy; Developing a policy brief which summarize evidence-based recommendations to improve student housing affordability and availability on/off-campus.

Research & Data Analysis on Student Housing Landscape in Mississauga

Postsecondary students are facing a housing availability and affordability crisis across Canada that is creating barriers for students to succeed academically and professionally, yielding negative impacts on students' overall physical and mental well-being. Today, rental housing costs on average 2x the cost of tuition for Canadian domestic students, and is one of the most significant barriers to postsecondary education for international students in Canada — up to 5% of students will experience some for of post-secondary student homeless over the duration of their academic careers. In the City of Mississauga, on-campus housing growth and development has been limited, while off-campus housing policy has lagged behind the need/demand for affordable student housing options, including for multi-tenant (rooming) houses for students. Despite conducting a market demand study, the University of Toronto Mississauga Campus (UTM) is not currently pursuing any new housing development, which impact access to housing for student enrolled at UTM, as well as Mohawk College (Mississauga Campus), Lambton College (Mississauga Campus), Sheridan College (Mississauga Campus), as well as private and careers colleges in Mississauga. Notably, there is a gap in research on the current student housing landscape in Mississauga. HOUSE aims to fill this gap by conducting policy-based research on on/off-campus in the region, with an emphasized focus on housing options at/near the UTM. Research Goals include: Identifying current policies on lodging houses and accessory units which impact postsecondary student housing in Mississauga and near UTM; Adapting existing student housing research surveys and tools to be distributed to students across Mississauga; Collecting data and evidence to support policy recommendations which support postsecondary student in Mississauga and near UTM; Analyzing the data to identify key findings and insights to bring to the federal, provincial, and municipal government stakeholders in Mississauga.

Visualizing Underreported Student Housing Data Across Ontario

The project aims to process analyzed data on student housing in Mississauga and North York (Toronto) into visual and knowledge translation assets. Public housing data from CMHC and Statistics Canada omit students and student housing for data on Core Housing Need for a variety of technical reasons, including: Post-secondary students are assumed to be in a 'transitional phase' by Statistics Canada; Post-secondary students' low-income status is viewed as a 'temporary condition' by Statistics Canada; Mature post-secondary students are omitted from Statistics Canada's 'Non-Family Households' category; Statistics Canada assigns domestic post-secondary students 'usual residence' as their parents address; Student households on/off-campus are omitted from CMHC's rental market survey. This project focuses on translating analyzed data into accessible and simplified knowledge assets for public use and distribution. Assets created throughout the project will be hosted on HOSUE's website and social media platforms to promote research on student housing which address the gaps currently existent in public housing data. By visualizing field research data collected by HOUSE and developing publicly available assets which call for policies that promote the creation of more affordable and available housing for post-secondary students on/off-campus, this project aims to better inform public officials, communtiy stakeholders, and the public at-large about evidence-based student housing solutions. Project activities include: Translating current housing data related to student accommodation in Mississauga into visual assets (i.e. charts, graphs, infographics, posters/posts...); Visualize student housing trends and market data relating to student housing affordability and availability in Mississauga and North York (Toronto); Developing web and social media assets using Google Looker Studio and Application Programming Interface (API) Tools on HOUSE's and local partners' websites.

Architectural Assistant - HOUSE Canada

HOUSE Canada is a federally incorporated non-profit dedicated to research, advocacy, and development of affordable housing for post-secondary students and young people. Our goal is to create quality, community-oriented and perpetually affordable housing that is by and for the communities we serve. HOUSE works with partners in the housing sector, post-secondary institutions, student unions and government to accomplish this. HOUSE is a member-owned and controlled organization, made up of local self-governing affordable housing committees (such as the York University Affordable Housing Committee), mission-aligned organizations and student union locals. We are creating housing by community, for the community. HOUSE has a progressive workplace culture that provides flexibility and makes staff well-being a priority, while balancing these with accomplishing the mission of the organization and holding ourselves accountable for our areas of responsibility.