Like many in our community, CCOC faces ongoing financial pressure from rising costs. Expenses like repairing and maintaining buildings, utilities, insurance, and staffing have increased significantly, and they continue to rise faster than CCOC’s revenues.
Rents paid by tenants make up 59% of CCOC’s annual income, which means they are the primary way of paying for building upkeep, employee wages, and tenant services. While CCOC receives some grant funding and some CCOC households receive rent assistance through government subsidies, CCOC’s ability to provide quality, well-maintained housing for everyone depends on a sustainable mix of rent levels across our communities.
Rents in Ottawa
CCOC works hard to keep our homes affordable. Average rent increases at CCOC have stayed close to the provincial guideline and well below Ottawa’s overall market trends for the past decade, averaging about 1.9% per year. For example, in 2024, when Ottawa’s rent increase saw a 5.2% jump, CCOC kept our increase at 2.5%. Most years, CCOC’s rent increase has been less than half the average increase in Ottawa. Keeping rents fair and stable is part of CCOC’s ongoing commitment to building an inclusive and affordable community. But to maintain buildings, respond to tenant needs, and plan for future improvements, CCOC must adjust rents in a way that protects the long-term health of our organization.
As a non-profit housing provider, CCOC is exempt from the part of the Residential Tenancies Act that requires landlords to stick to a regulated increase. This year, CCOC’s Board of Directors has made the hard decision to increase 2026 rents by 3.5% at lease renewal, or 1.4% above the guideline amount of 2.1%. Based on the 3.5% increase, the average rent increase for CCOC households will be about $35 this year. Tenants who receive a rent subsidy will not see any change to their rent.
Mix of rent levels
CCOC’s mission is to house low- and moderate-income households, and the organization has always taken pride in our mixed income model. CCOC has always needed to maintain a mix of rent levels to support our financial sustainability. Currently, CCOC “market” rents are well below Ottawa’s Average Market Rent (AMR); our “market” rents average between 70–75% of AMR.
This means many tenants paying a “market rent” at CCOC are paying less than tenants in Below Market Rent (BMR) units, which are only available to those who qualify through the Centralized Waitlist managed by the Housing Registry of Ottawa.
When CCOC “market rents” fall too far below AMR, the mixed model is less able to provide long-term financial sustainability for the organization and our ability to operate and reinvest in our communities is at risk. CCOC aims to have average set rents across the entire portfolio between 85% and 100% of AMR. It’s a challenging time for all affordable housing providers, and CCOC is no different. We are trying our best to keep rents as affordable as possible in all circumstances while balancing our commitment to the households we serve and the financial sustainability of the organization.
Who is affected?
The 3.5% rent increase affects fewer than half of CCOC households. Tenants receiving a rent subsidy will not be impacted as the rent they pay is calculated according to their income.
We understand that rent increases can be difficult. Individual lease renewal packages will include specific information for each household. Please wait until you receive your package to contact your Rental Officer, as they will be best equipped to assist you at that time.
What else is CCOC doing to address the financial challenges?
CCOC’s Board of Directors and Leadership Team are actively working to address financial challenges through other channels by applying for grants, exploring capital funding, reviewing internal operations, and advocating to all levels of government for more investment in non-profit housing.
- Grant funding helps offset operational, organizational, and repair costs. CCOC applies for grant funding every year (sometimes several times per year!) and is working to increase the amount of grant funding we’re able to bring in, especially for costly capital repair and improvement projects. We were recently successful in securing $12 Million in grant funding from CMHC for energy efficiency improvements across the portfolio that will also help CCOC properties operate more cost-effectively. This large grant has helped offset CCOC’s own capital budget over three years.
- CCOC works with housing sector partners who are also feeling financially strained to find solutions together. Some recent conversations focused on funding for capital repairs, rent subsidies, and insurance costs.
- We advocate to the City of Ottawa, the Province of Ontario, and the Federal Government for better funding. In 2026-27, CCOC will be negotiating new operating agreements with the City of Ottawa for many CCOC properties. We hope these will be more predictable, flexible, and realistic – and ultimately provide a more financially secure future for CCOC.
- The property tax reduction that CCOC obtained in 2023 has helped alleviate financial pressure from rapidly rising insurance costs. There are other ways to mitigate high insurance costs (like moving toward smoke-free buildings, for example) that CCOC is also exploring.
- We are looking for ways to address the ways that our investments and insurance are restricted. We’re hopeful that we might see movement on these issues soon.
- Finally, we’re looking for efficiencies internally, and trying to find ways to bring down our operating costs within the organization.
Thank you for being part of the CCOC community. We remain committed to providing quality, affordable housing rooted in dignity and respect.
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