The four Delta, B.C. homes built by Kathleen Higgins and her husband John Higgins stand on two subdivided 33-foot lots with two units per lot that share a party wall, with driveways for parking.Patrick and James Higgins/Patrick and James Higgins
For the sake of their grown children, a Delta, B.C., couple decided that four homes were better than one. And so they set about the long and arduous task of converting their small rancher house into an intergenerational four-unit complex.
Six years later, the family is living happily with their decision and are encouraging other property-owning parents to do the same. They’re also hoping government will make the process easier than it was for them. Their family complex is the subject of a recent video post by American TV producer Kirsten Dirksen, who travels the world documenting small homes and simple living for her hugely popular YouTube channel.
Kathleen Higgins, a paralegal, and her husband John Higgins, an architect, got unanimous approval from Delta city council to rezone their single-family house so they could build four units in two separate duplex-style buildings, side by side. Everyone has full ownership of their unit and can sell it off, if they choose.
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The Higgins first had to convince Delta city hall to allow multiunit housing on a single-family lot, which took about a decade of lobbying. And then they had to get through public hearings. Ms. Higgins got 100 signatures on a petition to allow their rezoning. To their credit, she said, council ultimately voted in favour of their application in 2016, followed by a two-year build that included substantial fees a professional developer would pay for a commercial project.
“It shouldn’t be like that,” said Ms. Higgins. “City council should be way more flexible, and if they won’t be, then the provincial government should step in.
“It’s not really a success unless it becomes the norm,” she added. “Every time a house gets demolished, we would like to see at least four little homes built.
“But what is happening, most houses that are demolished get replaced by huge mansions that only rich people can afford. Except when a developer buys a bunch of properties and builds townhouses, but because of the cost to redevelop, the end product is way more expensive than if you do it lot by lot, with owners developing it.”
An old rancher style home once stood on the lot, where the Higgins' raised their seven children. Now, there are separate homes for four families.Patrick and James Higgins
The couple occupies one of the larger rear units while their two sons and a daughter occupy the other units, with their own children. They are two subdivided 33-foot lots with two units per lot that share a party wall, with driveways for parking. Until recently, Ms. Higgins’s 94-year-old mother had lived in one of the units, where she enjoyed the final six years of her life surrounded by family.
Over the years, they’ve watched at least a dozen small houses in their neighbourhood get replaced by massive houses, many of them also on 66- by 100-foot lots. Their old rancher, which they purchased in 1988, was 1,300 square feet, where they raised their seven kids. The newer living arrangement allowed their three youngest adult children to get into the property market. Son James, a building envelope engineer, helped with the project, and now lives in a 1,500-square-foot unit with his wife and three small children. He’d previously been living in a rented basement suite.
“I pinch myself to be in a ground-oriented simple duplex in the neighbourhood that I grew up with, and on the same plot,” said James. “I haven’t branched out too much, but I have no complaints.”
Because of his father’s design, they enjoy as much privacy from each other as they want, and yet James said if he needs his parents to watch the kids, they are there. Also, the design fits with the neighbourhood.
Until recently, Ms. Higgins’ 94-year-old mother had lived in one of the units, where she enjoyed the final six years of her life surrounded by family.Patrick and James Higgins
The province has already passed legislation that allows multiplex units on single-family lots throughout the province. But it won’t be an instant fix for such a pricey housing market.
For the Higgins family, it was an affordable solution because the parents owned the land. Each subdivided lot had a budget of around $688,000, based on an appraisal by Vancity, who provided the construction financing, said Ms. Higgins. Her children only had to obtain mortgages for the development, not the land, which added up to around $300 per square foot, according to James. Today, he estimates that cost would be closer to $450 per square foot. Ms. Higgins and her husband have a mortgage as well, and so they continue to work. But she said it’s worth it, and besides, they enjoy their jobs.
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Analyst David Eger, Altus Group vice-president, Western Canada, for research, valuation and advisory, calculated the costs for a fourplex project on the west side of Vancouver, on a typical 50- by 120-foot lot. He assumed a total square footage of 6,000 square feet, and unit sizes of 1,500 square feet. The land purchase price for each unit would be around $687,500 per unit and involve a construction cost of $1.165-million per unit. That brings the selling price to more than $2-million per unit and allows the developer a profit of $173,000 per unit.
“Given the high construction costs associated with building these types of buildings, it’s likely that this will not create homes which most people would consider as being affordable,” said Mr. Eger.
“I think the potential for building multiplexes on single-family lots should be more focused as an estate planning, family planning, early inheritance option – as opposed to a solution for creating a number of new affordable homes within the community.”
The Higgins' occupies one of the larger rear units while their two sons and a daughter occupy the other units, with their own children.Patrick and James Higgins/Patrick and James Higgins
A better option for more affordable housing would be the assembly of three city lots for 40 to 50 rental units with underground parking, he said.
Developer, architect and consultant Michael Geller agreed that unlike professional developers, existing homeowners have the advantage of passing land cost savings onto their kids. However, en masse, the idea of simply multiplexing single-family housing has a few hurdles, such as parking and infrastructure capacity.
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“While I am somewhat negative about the economic viability of making these projects work, if you are a [homeowner] developer, the concept of creating a multigenerational development on a lot you already own, working with a capable, decent, honest builder, then it becomes quite exciting,” said Mr. Geller.
Developers who seek profit from the multiplex form have the challenge of a $2-million price point, and the fact that if left unsold, they face the empty homes taxes, he added.
“It works for families because you don’t have any risk when selling the units, you don’t have the same financial challenges, and it can be a wonderful way to also make a more intensive and better use of land,” said Mr. Geller. “The one thing I would mention is that to my mind as an architect, this concept works much better on corner lots than interior lots, and also much better if there is a lane. Then there is a lot more design flexibility.”