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According to the group’s statistics, there are at least 6,860 homeless people in B.C., and up to 117,000 households need help to afford their rent payments. The report also estimates that the province will need an annual average of 7,000 rental units brought to the market to resolve the current backlog of demand.

In its re-election platform, the Liberals have mostly proposed initiatives to create jobs in high-paying sectors like technology to address affordability, although the plan also includes the doubling of home renovation tax credits to seniors to $20,000, as well as tax credits of up to $2,500 for those who provide care for seniors. The province has also committed $920 million in new funding to build affordable rental housing.

The NDP, meanwhile, will announce its platform later this week. Housing critic and Vancouver-Point Grey MLA David Eby said the party’s platform will include a new tax on real estate speculators not currently paying taxes in B.C., as well as new regulations allowing universities to borrow money to build rental housing. The total value of units generated by the NDP package “will come pretty close” to the coalition’s request, Eby said.

Roy noted, however, that the plan’s announcement is not looking to influence policy just for the coming election.

“This is not going to be solved by the time of the provincial election,” he said. “It will be years and years after that. … We need to talk to MLAs on all sides to learn more about their local communities and become advocates in the legislature moving forward.”

The full report is at www.housingcentral.ca/sites/HousingCentral.

chchiang@postmedia.com