Community housing

Community housing, also known as Rent-Geared-to-Income (RGI) housing

Sometimes called Social or Rent Geared-to-Income (RGI) housing, Community Housing is subsidized, low-cost housing for households with low-to-moderate incomes. The Housing Access Centre, part of Housing Stability Services at the City of London connects eligible households with community housing in London & Middlesex County.

Please refer to the videos below and the other information on this page to learn more about Community Housing. I f you require an application form, let us know and we’ll mail it to you.

In-person assistance is available by visiting the City of London Housing Access Centre at Citi Plaza, 355 Wellington Street Suite 248, 2nd Floor London, ON N6A 3N7.

Important notice

Incomplete applications: The Housing Access Centre is unable to process your application if it is incomplete. You will not be added to the waitlists for your chosen buildings until we have submitted a complete application for your household. To ensure that your application is complete, please follow the instructions in the application carefully and ensure you have included ALL the required documentation with your application. Use the checklist to make sure you have completed all the necessary steps.

Housing wait times: There is a high demand for community housing in London. Wait-times for community housing are lengthy. Wait-time depends on many different factors including application date, urgent status, how many building selections, types of buildings chosen, vacancy rates, unit size, etc. It takes several years in most cases for community housing to become available. In some cases, households have waited for longer than 10 years for housing.

Emergency housing: Community housing is NOT emergency housing. If you are experiencing homelessness, at-risk of homelessness, or living in an unsafe situation, please contact our Coordinated Access Team at 519-661-4663 for support with finding solutions to your housing crisis.

Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit - Portable Housing Benefit (COHB PHB)

Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit - Portable Housing Benefit (COHB PHB)

The Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit (COHB) is a monthly portable housing benefit program that assists eligible households with their housing costs. Eligible households in London are matched to the program which is offered by the Province of Ontario based on program and community priorities. Once the household completed the application process and is approved by the Province, this housing subsidy is paid directly to the household or landlord to support housing affordability and stability within the private rental market. This benefit is portable and can move with a household to any community they choose to live in within Ontario.

The COHB pays the difference between 30% of the household’s income and the average market rent in the area. For recipients of social assistance, the COHB will pay the difference between the shelter allowance and the household’s rent and utilities costs.

A household can use COHB funding to help pay the rent at their current address or they may choose to find a new place to live anywhere in Ontario.

If an individual accepts the COHB benefit, they must agree to be removed from the Centralized Social Housing Waiting List as required by Provincial program guidelines.

Are You Eligible for COHB?

This benefit is not available to the general public.

COHB is referral based program based on direct identification from the Service Manager (City of London) per Provincial program guidelines. If you have been deemed eligible for COHB, you will be contacted by the Housing Access Centre, or its partner agency, inviting you to apply for the program.

For the City of London and Middlesex County, COHB is intended to support the following target groups:

Survivors of domestic violence or human trafficking;
Homeless or at risk of homelessness;
Indigenous persons;
Seniors; and
People with Disabilities.

Please Note: Being part of one of the above target groups does not guarantee that you will be matched to the program. The City of London identifies households most in need using the RGI/Community Housing Waitlist and Coordinated Access System.

To be eligible for COHB, a household must meet the following criteria:

Each member must be a Canadian citizen, landed immigrant or refugee claimant.
No member of the household has a deportation order, departure or exclusion order under the Immigration Act.
No member of the household owes arrears for either rent or damage to any community housing provider in Ontario, or they have set-up a repayment agreement which is in good-standing.
Your household’s annual income must be below the Household income limits for your community.
Applicants must be able to complete the requirements of the program, including filing taxes on an annual basis, and contacting the Ministry of Finance when their contact information, financial circumstances, or rent amount changes.
The household must agree to be removed from the RGI/Community Housing waitlist.

For more information about COHB, please review the full report to London City Council.

How Are COHB Benefits Calculated?

The COHB is calculated by using a variety of factors: annual income, type of income, average market rent, family size and apartment/unit size.

Households which are identified as being in high need of this portable housing benefit will be contacted by the Housing Stability Services Department at the City of London.

Households who are at-risk of homelessness or experiencing homelessness should contact the Coordinated Access team to complete an intake. Households are then matched to programs and services, including the COHB portable housing benefit, based on availability and suitability.

What Happens After You Apply for COHB?

Once the application has been processed by the Service Manager, the application will be sent to Ontario’s Ministry of Finance (MOF) who makes the final approval decision on the applicant's eligibility. The Ministry of Finance then issues monthly payment directly to the household or their landlord if they choose.

Once the COHB recipients have been approved by MOF, Service Ontario will be the point of contact for ongoing program management. MOF will contact the applicant directly to inform them that their application has been approved.

All questions with regards to the status of a COHB application should be directed to MOF: 1-888-544-5101 or 1 800 263-7776 (TTY)

Community housing provider tools

As a social housing provider you have access to a variety of tools and supports from the housing team. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to the Housing Team. If you would like a copy of the Subsidy Estimation Form and Annual Information Return Form, please email housing@london.ca

Housing Division Notices

Housing Division Notices or HDNs are policies, procedures and directives established by the service manager to ensure consistent program delivery. If you have any questions regarding these HDNs, please reach out to the housing team.

Housing Division Notices

HDN 261 - Maximum Household Income (Replaces HDN #2022-257)

HDN 258 - Ceasing to meeting occupancy standards (Replaces HDN# 2012-178)

HDN 254 – Vacancy Loss (Replaces HDN # 2014-206)

HDN 253 – In-Situ Policy (Replaces HDN # 2005 – 88 & HDN # 2002 - 36)

HDN 248 - Single Refusal (2012 - replaces HDN 179)

HDN 244 - Updated Income & Assets Review Form (Replaces HDN 2015-215)

HDN 204 - Carbon Monoxide Alarms (Replaces HDN 2014-202)

HDN 188 - Local Standard -Conflict of Interest (Replaces HDN 2002-03)

HDN 181 - Local Rule - Maximum Absence from Unit (Replaces HDN 2002-27)

HDN 180 - Local Rule - Certain Convictions (Replaces HDN 2002-26)

HDN 177 - Local rule - Occupancy Standards (Replaces HDN 2005-85)

HDN 138 Attachments

The Housing Division is able to modify the above standard forms to suit individual needs. Please contact housing@london.ca

HDN 126: