Affordable Housing
London is in the midst of a housing crisis. Rents are skyrocketing and vacancy rates are at an all time low. More and more we are seeing members of our community fall through the cracks and end up in temporary shelters or on the streets.
Governed by LCF’s Social Finance Committee and advised by the Housing Action Committee (HAC) the Social Impact Fund seeks to kickstart affordable housing development in our community by helping organizations get shovels in the ground as quickly and efficiently as possible.
If you are in need of affordable housing, please call 21, visit the City of London’s Homeless Prevention and Housing page or refer to this resource.
Our investments in social enterprise is helping London Community Foundation to tackle the following UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Investments
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Loan: $300-400k | Affordable Units: 8
UWOC is dedicated to creating opportunities for a better life for everyone living in Oxford County. They use their connections to work in partnership with individuals, companies, labour and government; mobilize people and resources to support a network of programs that help people when they need it most.
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Loan: $1.89M | Affordable Units: 64
With Canadas targets for immigration combined with a severe shortage of affordable housing, there is a tremendous need for these proposed units and supports. CCLC intends to partner with CMHC National Housing Strategy to assist in pre-development expenses and long term mortgage capital.
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Loan: $2M | Affordable Units: 90
This mixed purpose residential vertical village of 300 units (90 affordable) will focus on using environmentally sound technologies, and is being used as a prototype that will be developed into a solution for city centers across Canada. The building will be intergenerational, affordable, and sustainable.
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Loan: $500k | Affordable Units: 30
Purchased by Marvin Rivas in late 2014 with help from a Social Impact Fund loan, the historic downtown Honest Lawyer building was converted into an affordable apartment building with commercial space on the ground floor.
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Loan: $2.1M | Affordable Units: 50
Owned and operated by Hamilton-based charity Indwell, Woodfield Gate opened it's doors in 2019 and now houses 69 individuals. Ten of the building's 50 affordable units are designated for Parkwood Institute at St Joesph’s Health Care London patients.
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Loan: $900k | Affordable Units: 50
The second Residenza Affordable Housing (RAH) building, Residenza Ortona began construction in Summer 2019. Located on Hamilton Road across RAH's Residenza Italia, the new project will welcome individuals and families of all ages and includes 10 units reserved for veterans.
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Loan: $1.6M | Affordable Units: 78
Leaders in non-profit housing since 1972 and still growing, Homes Unlimited recieved a loan in 2019 to purchase property for a mixed demographic development, with just over 30% of their units wheelchair accessible.
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Loan: $780k | Affordable Units: 6
YOU's newest project is the renovation of 340 Richmond, turning it into a space to host their Employment Resource Center and GED programs on the first floor while housing 6 affordable housing units for youth at various stages of exiting the foster system on the second and third floors.
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Loan: $500k | Affordable Units: 35
Veterans in the affordable housing sphere, Zerin's newest development in London will aim to build a respectful and inclusive community for people to live with hope and dignity.
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Loan: $2.25M | Affordable Units: 32
The Grace Gardens project will see the Parkview Motel in Guelph renovated to accommodate 32-units of supportive housing, targeting individuals who experience chronic homelessness and have complex needs due to aging, medical, mental health and/or addiction issues.
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Loan: $275k | Affordable Units: 8
Located on a donated parcel of land next to Clairvue's existing 60-unit affordable townhouse complex, this new development includes seven 1-bedroom units and one 2-bedroom unit at 80% market rent, with the Municipality of Chatham-Kent providing rent supplements to all units.
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Loan: $400k | Affordable Units: 33
With 19 deeply affordable single-bedroom units and 14 at 80% of average market rent, Home Concept's Read More195 Hespeler Road development will give many in Cambridge a place to call home.
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Loan: $300k | Affordable Units: 40+
The proposed project will consist of two, three-story low-rise apartment buildings (to-be-built), with 40 residential units in each building (multi-family, medium density residential designation). At least 50% of these units are intended for affordable housing.
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Loan: $1M | Affordable Units: 64
The corner of Duke and Madison Streets in the core area of Kitchener is the site of a now closed Lutheran Church. It is ideally located for affordable rental housing and close to services and amenities. The proposal is to build an 8-story apartment building with 60 to 64 units.
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Loan: $1.125M | Affordable Units: 7
Legion Villa in Blenheim, Ontario has successfully run a 35-unit senior’s apartment since 1990. This new project will be an extension of the existing Legion Villa, and will add 13 rental units, 7 of which will be designated affordable.
Social Enterprise
The Social Impact Fund has expanded the financial tools available to LCF, ensuring that we can be flexible to the needs of each applicant. The goal of our Social Impact Fund is to strengthen entrepreneurship in London’s social enterprise sector, primarily through financial investments.
We want to work with non-profit organizations, as we recognize that many non-profits have difficulty securing financing from the traditional sources.
In addition to providing traditional loans, the Social Impact Fund can provide support through various other financial instruments, including lines of credit, letters of guarantee, mortgages or even an equity investment if the project is a good fit.
Our investments in social enterprise is helping London Community Foundation to tackle the following UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Investments
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Loan: 69k
Mensadora/Rebel Rags creates reusable menstruation and bladder care pads for local individuals in need. The organization aims to ensure that all individuals, regardless of finances have access to environmentally safe, user friendly, reusable menstruation and bladder protection.
Read More
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Loan: 25k
The W.E.A.N. Community Centre aims to serve all members of the community with a focus on supporting and empowering the black and marginalized communities by creating initiatives for equal opportunity and equal access to well-being, spiritual health and personal economic prosperity. The centre is proud to housee the first black public library in Canada, where they provide literature by people of color for people of all cultural backgrounds.
Read More
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Loan: $27k
Honest Empathy is mental health platform that provides innovative support groups and therapeutic journaling. Their mission is to make mental healthcare accessible for all and make isolation a thing of the past. They are a response to the ever-increasing mental health challenges that were difficult in early days of Covid.
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Line of Credit: $50k
London Community Foundation provided it’s first line of credit guarantee to Growing Chefs! Ontario to support their plans for expansion. The line of credit is an alternative low-risk option that provides the organization with flexibility and a financial cushion, should they require it.
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Loan: $250k
Evergreen is redeveloping the 53,000 square foot Kilns Building at the Brick Works site into the Future Cities Centre in Toronto. The Centre will be a physical hub for the activities of the Future Cities Network, harnessing the power of collective actions to build capacity and scale solutions across the country.
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Loan: $350k
The project, led by BerQ RNG, will implement technology that collects and refines gas produced from food waste, turning it into RNG that is then diverted into existing pipelines. Recycling greenhouse gases this way both prevents them from being released into the atmosphere and reduces the need for fossil fuel gas.
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Loan: $50k
Reimagine Co. is a zero waste store selling sustainable products that make it easy to go waste-free while connecting with London’s sustainable living community. To facilitate expansion, they will be moving into and renovating a new location on 206 Piccadilly Street.
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Loan: $112.5k
Urban Roots London engages in sustainable and organic farming practices to make local and healthy produce, including a range of vegetables, available to its community. Approximately 33% of its production is sold at full price, 33% is sold at affordable rates, and 33% is donated to community partners and social service agencies.
Why Work With Us
Low Interest Rates
We make the cost of borrowing manageable, meaning more of your income can be used for social impact.Flexible Financing
The Social Impact Fund can provide support through various other financial instruments, including traditional loans, lines of credit, letters of guarantee, mortgages or even an equity investment.Personal Process
We make it as quick and easy for you as possible to access funding through LCF's Social Impact Fund by cutting through the red tape that traditional a burden.Desire to Get to Yes
LCF is in your corner. We approach every meeting, every application with a desire to arrive at a solution that works.Social Focus
As a community foundation, LCF's mandate centers around making our community a better place. Your mission and desire to make an impact on your community is just as important to us as your profitability.Trusted Partner
LCF's board and committees have decades of finance, investment, and community building experiencing informing every decision. You can trust us at every step.
Useful Links
Contact Us
Think the Social Impact Fund might be a good fit for your Social Enterprise or Affordable Housing development? Tell us about it! Start the conversation with us below.
Application Resources
Below you’ll find resources that may help you prepare to apply for a loan from LCF’s Social Impact Fund.
Apply For A Loan (.pdf)
Loan Approval Process (.pdf)
Eligibility
LCF is accepting applications from all organizations that are in the business of doing good, be it a social enterprise or building affordable housing. Here are some definitions and resources that can help you figure out where you fit in.
Recognition & Reporting
We ask that you recognize our contribution by acknowledging the Foundation in marketing and media materials (print and online) when possible and appropriate. Please use the below materials and guidelines, and contact Matthew Brewer if you have any questions.
Logo Package (.zip)
Brand Guidelines (.pdf)
Yard/Construction (.pdf)
External Resources - Affordable Housing
External Resources - Social Enterprise
Ready to Apply?
Great, we look forward to receiving your application! If you’re still insure about anything regarding the Social Impact Fund, check out our FAQ’s below, or contact Vijay Venkatesan, VP of Finance and Operations, for more information.
Social Impact Fund
For many Foundations, much of their assets are locked into investments that don’t make any kind of intentional social impact. In 2012, our former Governor General challenged all foundations, both private and public, to direct at least 10% of their assets to impact investments by 2020.
LCF looked at the challenge as an opportunity to align our assets with our mandate and created the Social Impact Fund, prioritizing affordable housing.
Our Social Impact Fund totals over $20M, double its initial 10% goal, and has invested in a variety of both affordable housing and social enterprise projects since its inception.
If you think the Social Impact Fund could help with your Social Enterprise or Affordable Housing Development, tell us about it today!
So much of the social finance work London Community Foundation does relies on work done in the background by law firm Lerners LLP. Mark Evans, a partner at Lerners, tells us a bit more about the work he does for the Foundation.
Deb McKenna, Construction Manager at Flourish, a social enterprise established by Indwell that specializes in affordable housing development, shares her perspective on some of the challenges that come with repurposing the two heritage buildings on the Vision SoHo site.
Over the past few weeks, you may have noticed the large crane on the site of the Vision SoHo project on the grounds of the old Victoria Hospital. Construction of the underground parking lot is now well underway, with the crane on the site being the longest ever seen in London at 75 metres long. Here’s how the site is progressing.
The 99 Pond Mills mixed-income development opened in May 2023, but London Community Foundation’s involvement in the project goes back to 2019. We take a look back at five aspects of the project that made it such an attractive investment for our Social Impact Fund.
A lesser-known element of what we do at London Community Foundation is harnessing the power of finance for positive change through impact investing, creating meaningful change within the community through our Social Impact Fund.
LCF recently loaned $400,000 to United Way Oxford, for a transitional housing project in Tillsonburg that really speaks to the importance of strong partnerships, and how quickly change can be made when everyone pulls in the same direction.
A groundbreaking event this morning (Friday, October 14th, 2022) celebrated the Vision SoHo Alliance taking possession of the Old Victoria Hospital Lands and the start of construction for the single largest affordable housing development in London’s history.
Seeing the dire need for affordable housing in London, an issue exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Gateway Church made a generous gift of $50,000 in support of the Vision SoHo Alliance’s redevelopment of the Old Victoria Hospital Lands.
In 2016, Richie Bloomfield, Jeremy Horrell and two of their friends were gathered at a coffee shop, discussing what urban agriculture could look like in London.
“We had seen the inspiring work groups were doing in other places similar to London,” says Richie. “In some cities, like Detroit, people in need could stop by and pick up free, fresh produce, which is truly inspiring – but these groups often expressed a lot of anxiety around their financial position.”
This casual discussion is what eventually led Richie and Jeremy and their two friends to co-found Urban Roots London.
Homes Unlimited (London) Inc. is a London-based non-profit housing developer. Founded in 1972, the organization, along with its sister corporation Odell-Jalna Residences of London, owns 524 affordable housing units across the city, offering safe, affordable and accessible housing for people in London with lower incomes. As part of the Vision Soho Alliance, Homes Unlimited plans to add 100 more affordable units to its roster with a new building on the old Victoria Hospital lands.
Originally established in 1993 as the Fanshawe Bursary, the Homes Unlimited Memorial Bursary Fund supports tenants, or their children, living at a property operated by Homes Unlimited (London) Inc. or Odell-Jalna Residences of London Ontario with tuition fees for full-time studies at Fanshawe College.
The importance of having a place to call home goes beyond just four walls – it means having a sense of safety, security and love.
Unfortunately, too many youth in our community go without this basic need. The risk of experiencing homelessness is especially great for those who are exiting the child protective care system. With the help of a $780,000 loan from LCF’s Social Impact Fund, Youth Opportunities Unlimited ( YOU ) in partnership with Children’s Aid Society London and Middlesex has been able to address this gap.
The Vision SoHo Alliance, a newly formed partnership between six nonprofit housing developers announced today its commitment to purchase the vacant Old Victoria Hospital lands to develop a vibrant mixed-use housing complex that will help increase the supply of affordable housing in our community.
LCF has awarded $216,537 amount in funding to 6 more social purpose organizations in London & Middlesex County as part of the Government of Canada’s Investment Readiness Program (IRP). These organizations are working to create meaningful jobs, strengthen the charitable and nonprofit sector, and address social challenges, including the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These organizations will be better prepared to receive investment, including through the Government of Canada’s Social Finance Fund.
London’s affordable housing crisis is only expected to get worse with COVID-19’s impact on the economy. That’s why London Community Foundation (LCF) is proactively reaching out to potential developers of affordable housing who may need access to financing to get started.
“The night I moved in, I sat in this chair and looked out the window. I didn’t have any blinds or curtains up yet, but I thought to myself, I finally feel home.”
This is what Barbara Cobbe, a Zerin Place resident of six years, said when asked about the impact the building has had on her life.
Indwell, a Christian charity that creates deeply affordable housing communities, is in London to stay. Thanks to London Community Foundation’s Affordable Housing Fund and support from the London community, Indwell is creating homes for some of London’s most marginalized citizens.
Thousands of children, seniors and vulnerable adults in our community can’t count on the basic need of housing. With rising costs, precarious employment, and a shortage of affordable housing units, more Londoners are living in inadequate housing and shelters than ever before.
Thanks to a loan from London Community Foundation’s Social Impact Fund, the Italian Seniors’ Project (ISP) embarks on its second affordable housing project that aims to provide a sense of belonging to all residents.
In response to London’s growing housing crisis, the London Community Foundation announced today the doubling of its financial assistance to up to $20 million to support the creation of affordable housing.