Reconnect 2023
Vancity Community Foundation was founded on the belief that if we work together, we will have the resources we need to build a thriving community. An example of this is the Vancity Affordable Housing Accelerator Fund (herein Accelerator Fund).
In October, VCF brought together donors, individual social investors, and institutional impact investors to learn more about the Accelerator Fund and how their collective contributions are transformed into affordable housing through the hard work and dedication of community organizations.
The Reconnect event was held at Aspen, which received pre-construction loans from the Accelerator Fund in 2018 and 2019. Aspen (pictured to the right) is a 9-story mixed-used building which includes 145 rental homes with 50% of the homes suitable for families (and a portion of the homes fully accessible) as well as community gardens and shared rooftop terrace. The site is also home to the purpose-built Mid-Main Community Health Centre.
The Accelerator Fund
The Accelerator Fund has been providing low-cost acquisition and pre-construction loans to the community housing sector since 2011. The goal of the Accelerator Fund is to grow the supply of climate ready community-owned affordable rental housing for diverse people with low to moderate incomes.
Seeded with $7MM in grant funding from our founding partner Vancity credit union, VCF pools capital from funders, government, and impact investors (including a portion of VCF's own donor advised fund portfolio) to make financing available to support the acquisition and pre-construction of affordable rental housing projects. These loans fill a critical capital gap early in the development process, when other forms of financing are not readily available. The Accelerator Fund has been able to make loans to non-profit, cooperative, and Indigenous organizations to help move their affordable housing projects forward.
Currently the Accelerator Fund is deployed to community through 41 active loans. When loans are repaid, the funds are reinvested in new projects.
Results (so far) of the Accelerator Fund
Additional information
ABOUT THE FUND
Videos and Stories
- The Non-capitalist Solution to the Housing Crisis
- Happy to Be Here, Vancouver apartment brings opportunity for people living with autism
- Taryn’s story: How an autistic adult found housing in Vancouver
- Catalyst & Rivermark
- Learning to Leverage Assets
Contact Us
Vancity Community Foundation is seeking new investors to help grow the loan fund in order to make more lending available to community organizations. If you are interested in supporting the Vancity Affordable Community Housing Program or Accelerator Fund through a donation, grant, or investment, please contact us: give@vancity.com