Landowners

A residential street scene with modern houses on one side and a lush green forest in the background. The sky is partly cloudy, suggesting early summer weather. There is an empty, undeveloped lot in the foreground, with patches of grass and a large log lying across it. The houses have a contemporary design with dark and neutral colors, and the neighborhood appears quiet and newly developed.

For private landowners

BC Builds offers low-cost repayable construction loans to private developers to help make projects viable in the current high-cost environment and to build homes for middle-income households and families. Private developers that secure financing from BC Builds must deliver homes for households within the BC Builds income ranges ($84,780 to $131,950 for a studio or one-bedroom home or $134,410 to $191,910 for a two-bedroom home or larger) for a period of 10 years.  

Please email info [at] bcbuildshomes.ca (info[at]bcbuildshomes[dot]ca) to learn more or receive an intake package.

Rates for interim construction financing
20245.50%
20253.65%
20263.30%
20273.30%
20283.30%
Rates for take-out financing
20244.69%
20254.56%
20264.52%
20274.52%
20284.52%
  • 35-year amortization
  • Take-out financing only available to non-profits

For government, non-profit and community landowners

BC Builds helps landowners develop a vision for underutilized land and unlock it for housing.

BC Builds works with:

  • government
  • non-profit
  • First Nations
  • community landowners like local health authorities, school districts, colleges and universities, faith groups, service clubs, and more

BC Builds helps develop a vision and to set project goals and timelines. BC Builds assists landowners in looking for creative opportunities to add housing on existing sites, and to incorporate housing above new community infrastructure such a housing above childcare, a community centre, a fire hall and more.

How can government, community and non-profit landowners work with BC Builds? 

There are two main pathways to working with BC Builds. Some landowners already have a development partner and are looking to BC Builds for construction financing, grants and take-out financing.  

Others have land and are seeking development partners and building owner/operators, or may already have an operator or have created a municipal housing corporation and need a developer and builder. BC Builds can help secure a development partner and a building owner/operator for zoned lands using the Housing Development Opportunities page. Here’s how it works.

Housing Development Opportunities Process Overview Graphic
Interior of a bare wood frame room with light entering from a window

How do the BC Builds grants work? 

BC Builds is a rental housing supply program, not a housing affordability program. When BC Builds provides grants to buildings that are owned and operated by non-profits, co-ops, public housing corporations or First Nations entities, 80% of units rent at market rents and 20% of units rent at 20% below market rents.  

The per unit grant amount for a BC Builds project is calculated based on the amount of additional funding required to rent 20% of units in a building at 20% below market assuming a 35 year amortization and a Debt Coverage Ratio of 1.1. In other words, what is the equity gap created in a project when 20% of units are dropped from renting at market rates to 20% below market?  

To calculate the potential per unit grant amount for your project, divide the equity gap by the total number of units in the building and that is the per unit grant. This grant is applied to each unit in the building, not just the 20% of units at 20% below market.  

Projects requiring more than a grant of $225,000 per unit are not viable BC Builds projects.

BC Builds does not provide ongoing operating subsidies to buildings or build supportive or low-income housing.  
 

BC Housing acknowledges the Province’s commitment to the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act as well as the Province’s consultation obligations to First Nations regarding the use and disposition of underutilized provincial land that may be identified as potential BC Builds projects.

BC Housing will work with the Province and First Nations to ensure these obligations are met. During this process, BC Housing will also be engaging with First Nations to look for BC Builds partnership opportunities.

Learn more

To learn more about having underutilized land listed on the Housing Development Opportunities page, please write to info [at] bcbuildshomes.ca (info[at]bcbuildshomes[dot]ca).

Resources

This webinar sheds light on how the BC Builds Team is forging partnerships to address housing obstacles such as inflation, land costs, and construction expenses.

A collection of BC Builds info session recordings for various housing development opportunities.

Check out the Vancity Community Foundation for early-stage grants, help with feasibility studies, pre-construction loans, workshops, and more.

  • ​​​Refine your project concept  
  • ​​​Municipal and community consultation and engagement  
  • ​​​Development options analysis  
  • ​​Complete preliminary financial analysis & models  
  • ​​​Identify funding and financing  
  • ​​Site control & due diligence  
  • ​​​Detailed design & schematics  
  • ​​​Build your development team

*Checklist care of our friends at Vancity Community Foundation