Photo: MARIO BARTEL/TRI-CITY NEWS . Frances Stone relaxes in the outdoor amenity space at the new condo complex in Coquitlam where she lives in one of 18 affordable rental apartments. Frances Stone had never lived in a home that requires a security fob or a building that has an elevator.
When the landlord of her walkup building in Uptown New Westminster informed Stone she needed to move so their daughter could move in, she considered uprooting to Alberta where the provincial government is offering financial incentives to newcomers and rents are much cheaper. Then a friend told her about a partnership between the Affordable Housing Society and Vancouver-based developer Anthem Properties that would make 18 rental homes in two new condo towers in Coquitlam available at rates geared to tenants’ income. According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.
(CMHC), that means a tenant pays 30 per cent or less of their gross income for rent. Stone and her teenage daughter moved into their gleaming two-bedroom-plus-den unit in Anthem’s SOCO project just off North Road in August. She said it’s the first time in her adult life she’s felt secure about her future.
So much so, Stone said she’s in the final stages of adopting a rescue dog to add to her family, something she’s wanted to do for years but failed to pursue because of her ongoing housing uncertainty. That’s music to the ears of Stephen Bennett, CEO of the Affordable Housing Society. He said being able to live in a saf.