Guides
Reference guides on developing in Halifax — the full process from parcel to occupancy, the financing programs, what a feasibility study answers, and the affordable-housing path. Evergreen, written by a firm that builds its own technology for the work.
For owners of a lot
Owners of a parcel or an ER-3 lot in Halifax, deciding what to do with it.
- What a feasibility study answersWhat a parcel can support, what should be built, whether the money closes, and one answer: build, sell, or wait.Read the guide
- What your lot allows in HalifaxFour to eight units on an ER-3 lot, set by the lot's area; every lot the zone covers is on the record.Read the guide
For organisations with a mandate
Non-profits, co-ops, faith organisations, land trusts and funders with a mandate and the funding, or a path to it.
- How affordable housing gets developed without land or a teamWhat an organisation brings and what it lacks, who does what from the analysis to the keys, and how the programs in force are stacked to pay for the building.Read the guide
- Where affordable housing pencils in HalifaxCMHC's affordable rent against what the market asks in five areas, and the gap the programs in force have to carry.Read the guide
- Does our project qualify for MLI Select, and what does it do to the numbersHow the points are earned, what each tier does to the insured loan, and the top tier on an eight-unit building in Dartmouth.Read the guide
- How a non-profit chooses a development partnerFive ways to get a building built, what each costs in money, control and risk, and the six answers a board needs in writing.Read the guide
For owners of a building opening
Owners and asset managers of a rental building opening, or open and leasing slowly.
The process, and the firm's other readers
How development works from parcel to occupancy; funding and forming a rental project; what a buyer of completed housing needs.
- How development works in HalifaxThe six interdependent stages from parcel to occupancy, and where each one decides whether the building gets built.Read the guide
- Funding a new rental building in Nova ScotiaHow the money moves from the first deposit to the take-out mortgage: draws, the lien holdback, the equity bridge and the programs that touch the stack.Read the guide
- Forming a rental project in Nova ScotiaWhat a building's quote leaves out: site, foundations, transport, the code path, inspections, payments and warranty, and who is responsible for each.Read the guide
- Acquisition readiness for Nova Scotia rental housingWhat a long-term owner needs before considering a completed-housing acquisition: tenancy record, operating basis, permits and warranty, financing carry.Read the guide
The first step
Tell us about your parcel.
A feasibility study establishes whether it should be built — and if it shouldn't, we'll tell you that.
A fixed-fee study, credited toward the development fee if the project proceeds.