Who are our residents?
The Housing Trust’s residents are diverse but share a desire to live near transit, work, and community amenities, in good quality, affordable rental housing in walkable communities where average market rents can be out of reach for low to moderate-income households. Some residents live on fixed incomes – perhaps a pension – and many are part of the workforce.
The workforce includes a long list of people who work in a community but may not be able to afford to live there. Members of the workforce and Housing Trust residents represent many occupations, including:
- Custodians
- Healthcare workers
- Shelter staff
- Hotel workers
- Artists
- Cultural workers
- New graduates
- Young professionals
- Retirees
- Restaurant and retail workers
- …and many more
Because the Housing Trust invests in established buildings, its rents are lower than the market rents for new developments in the same neighborhoods. That makes them already affordable to many households. For others, the Housing Trust can provide additional support to households that need it.
The Median Renter Income (MRI) in HRM is $49,900. Rent of approximately $1,247 a month is considered affordable and attainable at that income level.
Meet some of our residents
Nicole is in her mid-forties and is a recently-single customer service representative with Access Nova Scotia. She has been living in a one-bedroom apartment at 21 Albert Street for six years. She chose the building because of the convenient location which is close to grocery stores, has lots of areas to go walking where she feels safe and is just a six-minute car ride to her job. Her rent is very affordable on her salary and the landlords are excellent and people are very friendly in the building. “I call it my retirement home but I’m not that age yet.”
How can I apply for housing with the Housing Trust?
The Housing Trust is focused on acquiring more units. We work with a property management company that provides the day-to-day management of our buildings and works closely with resident managers.
Our buildings are fully rented, and we are working on an application process when units become available. Check back for more information if you or someone you know is interested in living in one of our buildings.