Fredericton to make it easier to slice detached homes into 4 separate units
Getting rid of certain zoning hurdles could drive house purchases by investors, says researcher
Sweeping changes proposed for Fredericton would allow homeowners anywhere in the city to split their homes into four separate units without going through the zoning amendment process.
The new rules would encourage "gentle" densification in established neighbourhoods to increase the city's rental housing supply, said senior city planner Tony Dakiv.
There would not be a requirement that the property live in any of the units to qualify for the loosened restriction.
If passed, the changes would be the latest move by the city to encourage the creation of more housing in Fredericton, which had a historically low rental vacancy rate of 0.9 per cent as of last fall, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
But while the proposal could result in more rental options for tenants, it could also have the effect of pushing up prices for homes in the city, said Julia Woodhall-Melnik, a housing policy researcher and professor at the University of New Brunswick.
"If this does get a lot of traction among developers or investors, it could actually artificially inflate the home prices within Fredericton slightly, in which case then, you're starting to price some of those folks potentially out of the market who may otherwise be purchasing those homes to contribute to their home ownership," Woodhall-Melnik said.
Current zoning rules for most detached homes in Fredericton prevent owners from creating more than one additional unit on their property without first receiving approval for a zoning amendment from the city, Dakiv said during a recent news conference.
Under the proposed changes, a homeowner would be allowed to create up to three secondary units, in addition to the home's primary unit, without needing a zoning amendment.
The change effectively means the homeowner would only need to receive a building permit from the city, allowing them to skip the lengthier process of having the property's zoning changed, he said.
But if a property owner wanted to raze a home to construct a building with four identical units, they'd still need to get a zoning amendment, he said.
"So the focus is going to be almost entirely on [allowing] secondary dwelling units as opposed to allowing new four-unit buildings to locate anywhere in the neighbourhood," Dakiv said.
"So the same density will be achieved, but the secondary units do it in a much less intrusive way."
The proposed zoning bylaw amendments stipulate that the accessory units not be greater than 60 per cent of the floor area of the main unit in a house. This would mean 72 square metres or about 775 square feet.
Minimum lot size requirements are also included in the proposed changes to accommodate off-street parking.
The city has already held public engagement sessions about the changes. They go before the city's planning advisory committee this month and then to city council in March for final approval.
Other initiatives by the city have included providing public land for housing projects, and creating grant programs aimed at making rentals and owned homes more attainable.
The latest proposal is also one of the commitments the city made to the federal government in 2023, when it accepted a $10 million grant from Ottawa from the Housing Accelerator Fund.
A balanced approach, says mayor
Other Canadian cities, including Saint John and Moncton, are implementing similar changes.
In Fredericton's case, Mayor Kate Rogers said, the city wanted to take a balanced approach by encouraging density, while also preserving the character of neighbourhoods.
She said the changes would achieve that by requiring part of the home be kept as a larger primary dwelling unit, while allowing up to three additional units in the form of main-floor additions, basement apartments, in-law suites or garage lofts.
"There are lots of different ways that we could have approached this, but but we did it in a way that there would be sort of a main dwelling on the property, and then the accessory [dwellings] besides that," she said.
"So the hope is that people won't feel a significant shift [in their neighbourhoods]."
When asked, Rogers didn't say whether she has concerns about the changes encouraging investors to purchase single-family homes. She said building and fire regulations would be enforced.
"It's hard to know who is going to play a role in this," she said. "I do think it will be a way, though, for a lot of people to enter the housing market."
Potential benefit for renters
Woodhall-Melnik said the proposed changes could help make home purchases less affordable, but they could have a positive effect for renters.
She said the additional units that get built would add to the rental supply and might include more unique options not being provided by larger rental companies.
At the same time, she said, it's unclear just how many homeowners would take advantage of what the city is proposing.
She also has concerns about homes being quartered up by investors who are focused more on profit than on building regulations.
"I think it's very much a positive in terms of home ownership and being able to think about multi-generational living, multi-family living," she said.
"But what we do need to be careful about is … that it's being done in a safe way, in a manageable way."
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