tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1887701053197945139.post6984984193245036265..comments2023-08-10T05:32:21.235-05:00Comments on Awake and Dreaming - The Ramblings of a Social Worker: Housing Part One: Types of HousingAwake and Dreaminghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13257495492315814077noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1887701053197945139.post-53084742339050310902010-03-29T10:30:38.393-05:002010-03-29T10:30:38.393-05:00Trying to catch up on your blog. You have missed a...Trying to catch up on your blog. You have missed a form of housing that exists in Canada, but may not (I'm not sure) elsewhere. This is cooperative housing. Your monthly housing charge covers your share of the mortgage, and the costs of running the Co-op. Mortgage, in Canada, comes from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Commission (arms-length governmental agency). Typically costs are subsidized to 25 or 30% of your income up to a maximum. My husband and I have a three bedroom townhouse (including basement) for only $785 per month. We are not subsidized at this time, but have been in the past and it has been a life saver!Carolynnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1887701053197945139.post-68037445071839894672009-05-26T19:52:54.696-05:002009-05-26T19:52:54.696-05:00Wow, I don't think we have anything like that here...Wow, I don't think we have anything like that here for professionals. I wish we did! <br /><br />For the most part, our public housing sucks. I can think of a few places that it's okay, but for the most part...Awake and Dreaminghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13257495492315814077noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1887701053197945139.post-69552616946329863852009-05-26T01:57:28.324-05:002009-05-26T01:57:28.324-05:00Really interesting stuff.. thanks for this. It's i...Really interesting stuff.. thanks for this. It's interesting on a compare and contrast basis really because there are some differences that really jump out at me. Firstly, some of our public housing is bloody nice! I would kill for some of the housing that I visit 'on the rounds'! Of course, there is some pretty awful public housing as well but some that really beat out any private accommodation by a fair shot! Also here, sometimes fairly unique (I think) is that a lot of London anyway, is a mix of types of housing so even the most exclusive and expensive areas tend to have public housing scattered with private housing developments. The government also have a development programme where in order to get permission to build, a certain number of houses/apartments on any land need to be used for public housing. It's an attempt to mix things up. <br />There is a massive massive shortage of public housing though due to a policy of the last Conservative government to allow residents of public housing to buy their own properties at VASTLY reduced prices which has led to lower stocks of public housing all round (and some of the housing that was sold off when on to make hundreds of thousands of pounds). <br />As for me, I live in a kind of subsidized 'half-rent/half-bought' type of scheme set up to help those with necessary but lower paid jobs to stay in London (where the costs are high) and we have a massively subsidized rent but take a mortgage on the other half of the property.. it means I'm living somewhere about double the size of my private rented place for the same price but have rent AND a mortgage to pay! <br />On the other hand, the block is full of nurses/police/social workers/ambulance staff/firefighters etc because the system is only available to people in these kinds of professions so it's quite a nice little community!cbhttp://fightingmonsters.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com