'There's definitely demand': How homes without basements, stairs could ease northern Ontario housing crisis

This story is part of a special Housing North series looking at the market in northeastern Ontario.

Even with a dirt trench running down the hallway, and exposed wires and pipes hanging from the ceiling, it still kind of looks like an elementary school.

But by the time Peter Nault and his crews are done with the old St. Bernadette school in Sudbury, he doesn't think any of the former staff and students will recognize it.

One of the big reasons for that is Nault is removing all the common areas from the school in the New Sudbury neighbourhood and converting it into 20 rental units that are slab-on-grade, meaning there is no basement underneath.

That will be followed by new construction in the old schoolyard, with 27 more slab-on-grade units with separate first- and second-storey apartments in each, making for a total of 74 residences on the old school property.

Nault said that will bring his portfolio of rental units in Greater Sudbury up to about 300, much of those slab-on-grade construction, which is proving popular with seniors looking to downsize to a one-level home but still have two bedrooms, some outside space and storage room.

"There's a lot of stuff they don't want to part with," he said, adding there is a waiting list for the rental units and he regularly gets calls from seniors planning a future move.

"There's definitely demand. Lots of interest."

Despite that, Nault, who also has a construction company, Northern Home Builders, worries there could be a "major affect" on the local rental market if the U.S. carries through on tariff threats, driving up the cost of living even higher.

"So for me, as a developer, it's kind of a risky project, because we're putting in 74 units that we need to fill, in order to cover the cost," he said. 

"And if people can't afford the cost, there's going to be conflicting numbers there."

Nault said most of his slab-on-grade rental units range between $1,700 and $2,800 a month, and he collects those payments over a 40- or 50-year mortgage to keep the price "within a range of what somebody can afford."

"If we did this on a 25-year term, the rents would be out of reach," he said.

"Contrary to what people think, the profit at the end of the day is very minimal on a project this size to keep the rents at a reasonable amount."

Belmar Builders is another Sudbury developer that has been putting up more slab-on-grade units in recent years, and director Tim McDonald says they are proving "very popular."

That includes building several duplexes with crawl spaces in Hanmer every year that go for between $500,000 and $550,000, as well as single-family homes in Sudbury proper, including one in the south end that's listed for $898,000.

"There's nowhere for seniors to go any more," he said.

"We got some people who want to rent them. We have some people that are renting now that also want to buy from us. It's very good."