Building Faster, Smarter

British Columbia is facing one of the most pressing housing affordability challenges in its history. Families across our province are struggling to find homes they can afford, while demand continues to far outpace supply. Is prefabricated and modular construction the answer? It will certainly play a major role and FVREB’s latest report, Building Faster Smarter: Unlocking BC’s Prefabricated Housing Potential, lays out practical and innovative ways the sector can deliver more homes quickly, sustainably, and at prices within reach. Modular BC, a leading non-profit in the industry, has estimated that factory-made housing accounts for approximately 4.5% of new homes being built in the province annually. Their goal is to increase modular and prefabricated builds to 25% in the next five years through stakeholder engagement and training. And it would seem the market is ready: according to the research firm Abacus, six in ten Canadians believe the types of housing prioritized by the Build Canada Plan including modular homes, match what is needed today. Through government interventions and the creation of demand for modular and prefabricated construction, industry can respond appropriately and assess the potential challenges of bringing these structures to the market with greater confidence.

Read the full report here.

Regional Collaboration

FVREB’s Stakeholder & Government Relations Committee (SGRC) continued its municipal outreach program over the past several months, meeting with officials from a number of communities including Delta, Langley, Abbotsford and Mission to discuss ongoing initiatives and opportunities for collaboration on housing issues.

Intelligent City

Members of the FVREB Stakeholder & GR Committee Stakeholder Committee were invited to tour Intelligent City’s North Delta factory in August. A leader in the offsite construction space—Intelligent City shared a news conference with Prime Minister Mark Carney earlier this year, where he pegged the technology as a key strategy in his goal to build five million new housing units by 2035 in an effort to increase affordability.