A new survey in Prince Edward County is reinforcing the need for attainable housing.
Five students from Queen’s Business Consulting presented their findings on Monday afternoon to a small crowd at the Bloomfield Town Hall.
The survey was only available for one month but generated 330 responses, a figure they feel confident represents the population in Prince Edward County.
Their findings showed of 178 households, 103 were in need of attainable housing (approximately 58%).
Barry Davidson, the owner and CEO of Twelve Trees Condominium Development in Wellington on the former arena land, commissioned the report and says there was one thing that did surprise him in their report.
Single parents with one child and two adults were the most common family composition in terms of who needs affordable housing.
Business owners also participated in the survey and 27% noted they were unable to hire employees because those potential employees were unable to find or afford a place to live in the County.
A small group was on hand to hear the findings from Queens students on attainable housing in Prince Edward County at the Bloomfield Town Hall. (Photo: Amanda Smith/Quinte News)
The majority of respondents lived in Picton (54%) and Wellington (11%) and the majority age was 60-69 and 20-29 respectively.
The most common income bracket was between $20,000 and $29,999.
Just over half of those who answered the 26 question survey (51%) said they were not employed in Prince Edward County, and 25% listed no current occupation.
According to the survey, a two bedroom space was the most common sought after space and most people are looking to live in Picton (127 people) or Wellington (49), while 62 of respondents were not actively looking.
Parking was the biggest accommodation need followed by additional storage space.
Davidson says he commissioned the report to help his bid to attain funding for his attainable housing build.
Councillors Treat Hull and Bill Roberts were also in attendance at the meeting.
Rachel Klysen who worked on the report said those people from Toronto who are retired and moving to the County can afford to pay the higher prices and it is driving others out.
Another issue of note she did raise was how Air BnBs were changing the housing market and said that would require policies and regulations.
Klysen did note, there is an opportunity for people to build their families in other places, excluding Picton.
Song Yi, said a new idea that has yet to gain a foothold here is the idea of the older demographic renting out rooms for a lower rent in exchange for services such as yard work or house upkeep.
Davidson says this report will help bolster the argument for funding support for attainable housing in Prince Edward County.
