Creekside Rentals

The Tofino Housing Corporation and Catalyst Community Developments Society have received inquiries with respect to how tenants will be selected for the Creekside rental units and this page is intended to clarify the process that is being followed. This rental process is being managed by Ardent Properties under the direction of the Catalyst Community Developments Society, the building owner and non-profit partner of the THC.

Applications are due no later than 11:59 pm on January 1st, 2022. 

The application package can be downloaded and more information on the units layouts and renting at Creekside can be found at https://catalystcommdev.org/renters/creekside.

Complete applications must be emailed to sharp.road.rentals@ardentproperties.com by 11:59 pm on January 1st, 2022.

The 14 units at Creekside are initially being rented at the following rates to eligible households:

• 1 Bedroom, 570 - 695 square feet, $864 - $1,100
• 2 bedroom, 792 - 867 square feet, $1,080 - $1,550
• 3 Bedroom, 978 - 988 square feet, $1,200 - $1,703

The  Housing Agreement  between the District of Tofino and THC stipulates which households are eligible to rent at Creekside. Catalyst is leasing the land from the THC and the Lease requires that Catalyst follow the Housing Agreement and provide an annual report to the THC. 

The Housing Agreement also specifies which households should be prioritised for tenancy (see  below). This prioritisation was developed by the THC and confirmed through the approval of the Housing Agreement by the District of Tofino Mayor and Council. Given the number of inquiries received to date it is the expectation, though not guaranteed, that all units will be rented to Priority 1 households. 

1st Priority Tenants - Must meet ALL criteria

Residency: Living 24 of previous 36 months in the Alberni Clayoquot Regional District

Employment Requirement*: Have been working for 1 yr   full-time in Tofino, or for Island Health or for the Parks, or is a Senior or is on Disability.

* Working full-time means someone who has worked at least an average of at least 26 hours per week, year-round, and in the case of self-employment, means employment from which an individual earns at least 90% of his or her annual income; if your job was interrupted by closures or reduced hours due to the COVID-19 pandemic and your employer can confirm this in writing, then you will still be eligible. 

Real Estate: No real estate owned by the household

Maximum Household Income: 

    1 Bedroom = $51,000** or less 

    2 Bedroom = $81,000** or   less

    3 Bedroom = $91,000** or   less

** Maximum Household Income may be raised each year, if Catalyst chooses to do so, based on amounts specified in the Housing Agreement.  Due to the funding and financing received from the CMHC Co-Investment program Catalyst is further restricting the lower priced rental units (currently 7 of 14) to households with yearly household incomes below the following amounts: 

    1 Bedroom = $42,000 or less

    2 Bedroom = $50,000 or less

    3 Bedroom = $60,000 or less

The accessible units are also prioritised to those with physical disabilities who require that type of unit; the accessible units may be rented to other households should no one with a physical disability apply within the designated time frame.  

Priority 2 to 5 tenants defined by clause 4 through 6 of the Housing Agreement include less restrictive criteria (e.g. have not been working full time in Tofino or have not lived in the region 2 out of the last 3 years). Such prospective tenants can apply for the initial Creekside rent-up, but Catalyst is not expecting to have units to offer to such applicants. Such applicants will also not be put on the waitlist. 

Application Processing Details – Initial Tenancies Only 

1.  ALL applications received by 11:59 pm on January 1st, 2022 will get equal consideration. 

2.  Receipt of application notice sent to all applicants by end of day January 2nd, 2022.

3.  By January 7th, 2022 an email will be sent to all applicants with the assigned application number and where on the randomly ordered application list your application sits.  There will be separate lists for each unit type. 

Please note: 

* If your application is randomly selected to be at the top of the application list, it is NOT a guarantee of being offered a unit for rent - it just puts you at the top of the list for processing of your application, and   1) your eligibility must be confirmed, 2) you will most likely need to be a Housing Agreement top priority candidate (see discussion above) 3) once your eligibility and priority has been confirmed there must be a unit of the size, rent level and disability status that matches your household and 4) you must pass credit and reference checks. 

* Even if you are NOT in the top 14 position on the application list, you still may be offered a unit because of the unit to household matching considerations above. 

4.  As applications are received they are being reviewed by the leasing team for completeness and following up with tenant applications that are incomplete. Applications received closer to the January 1st deadline will be followed-up on in order of priority. You will be given a period of one week to provide any missing information - homes will not be held for people who are non-responsive to requests for additional information.

5.  If your application is randomly selected for processing and you do not meet the Priority 1 criteria you will receive an email indicating this and what priority category you fall into. This email will clarify that your application is being held to be considered for the initial tenancies only.

Following Initial Tenanting for Creekside

1. At end of the initial rent-up process, Catalyst will ask all non-successful Priority 1 applicants if they wish to be put on the waitlists for Creekside and/or Headwaters (DL 114). Please note that for the initial Headwaters tenancy, unsuccessful Creekside applicants and new Headwaters applicants will be randomly ordered per a similar procedure for the initial tenancy.

2. After the initial tenancy, new applications from Priority 1 household will be accepted at the discretion of Catalyst depending on the size of the waitlist. Catalyst may also choose to begin accepting waitlist applications from households who are not Priority 1 households depending on waitlist size.

3. Once a year Catalyst will ask people to indicate whether they would like to remain on the waitlist and if there has been a change in their household size.

4. After the first rent up period is complete and there is a vacancy for a new household, Catalyst will first look to accommodate changes in existing tenants’ housing needs. If no existing tenants require changes to their housing, households on the waitlist will be contacted by email and given 7 days to reply with an updated application. 

5. The applicant highest on the waitlist who submits an updated application and, also, has their eligibility reconfirmed, their Housing Agreement priority status reconfirmed, has a household size, income and disability status that matches the available unit and completes acceptable credit and reference checks, will be offered tenancy to the vacant unit.