The Year in Review; Five BC Home Building Trends in 2023
By Logan Ashley, Owner - Adaptive Homes
As a home builder and business owner it’s easy to get drawn into the routine of the day to day build and let another year go by as “more of the same”. However, the New Year offers an opportunity to step back and reflect on home building from an industry wide perspective. For me, seeing beyond the immediate needs of the business, and considering what’s working and what’s not helps define the more clearly the direction forward.
Looking at the building industry from this perspective, here are 5 BC building trends I noticed a shift towards in 2023:
1. High density builds and more long term housing solutions
In Revelstoke, it feels like everywhere you look there is a development going up.
I’d be willing to bet it’s the same where you live, too.
There is a serious effort to address the long term housing challenges in BC right now, and high-density housing is one avenue they’re pursuing.
The province is also streamlining the process for property owners who want to build secondary suites and accessory dwelling units (ADUs), making it more affordable with incentives. This approach allows for those looking for housing in the communities they already know and love to stay put, and settle down.
This combination of building more capacity with less space, and building new alongside the existing, is a direction I’m thrilled to see construction in BC headed.
2. An emphasis on sustainable construction
This year, we saw home owners taking local climate and environmental impact into consideration more than ever before. This shift in consumer behavior means that eco-friendly practices, and green building materials will surely continue to grow as offers in the building industry heading into 2024.
For us at Adaptive Homes, the shift towards sustainable as “standard” is a welcome change. When we began operating in 2018, we imagined a way of building that integrated sustainable building practices into each step of the process.
For us, prefabrication was the solution that allowed us to create cost-effective and aesthetically pleasing homes without sacrificing our core value of low environmental impact. Seeing more construction companies reframe their businesses in the name of sustainability is the direction I hope to see the industry continue on in 2024.
3. Affordable housing initiatives
The demand for affordable housing solutions continued to be a priority this year, with the policy makers and the rental market joining the conversation in a big way.
It is becoming easier for builders to engage and collaborate with the government on non market housing initiatives for employee housing, affordable home ownership, co-housing options. One example of a step in that direction is the $20 million CMHC is putting towards low-cost rental financing, as outlined in Canada’s Housing Action Plan.
Beyond aligning ourselves with legislation, I’ve noticed the conversation about innovative construction methods (more prefab!) growing, and a focus on incorporating cost-effective materials.
4. Focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy
Happily, I noticed a shift towards energy-efficient features and renewable energy sources in builds this year. In part this change is due to environmental imperatives like climate change, in part changing consumer preferences, but also due to innovation in technology which makes these planet aiding solutions the highest performing option.
High-efficiency HVAC systems, advanced insulation, and the integration of solar panels are becoming more commonplace in the world of building. Energy Efficient upgrades are being encouraged by not only the government, but banks as well. An example of this is Vancity's current offering to borrowing for environmentally friendly upgrades specifically.
This year, the province of BC also began enforcing a minimum step code 3 standard for building. At Adaptive Homes, we build to a standard of step code 5, which is a Net Zero Ready home. In my opinion, step code 3 is the minimum we should have ever been building to, but when you know better you do better. I’m happy to see this rising step code backed by the government.
5. Resilience amid economic shifts
Changing interest rates, rising construction costs, and dynamic housing market we all huge player in the construction game this year. Flexibility in project planning and a strategic response to economic fluctuations took center stage as builders navigated this changing market.
Harnessing technology, a skilled workforce, the diversification of projects and the support of government policies, I believe the construction companies who navigated the dynamic building landscape this year most successfully, are the ones who threw out the handbook and embraced new ways of approaching old and growing issues.
This year, adaptability became an industry hot topic as builders responded to shifting priorities due to the economic downturn, and the state of the environment. While Adapting has been a part of our business model since day one (Hello, Adaptive!), we were happy to see this shift starting industry wide. For consumers and the government, the prioritization of sustainable and affordable housing solutions were the hot topics, and both apart of bigger conversations, which I expect will only grow as we head into 2024.
