TORONTO, March 8, 2016 – Heather Tremain, Harvard Fellow and development consultant, has been appointed the new chief executive officer for Options for Homes, Canada’s largest non-profit delivery agent of affordable home ownership.
Tremain replaces Mike Labbé,
who founded and led the organization for 21 years. Mike is now the president and CEO of Options
International, established to deliver affordable housing outside of Canada,
primarily in Africa.
“I am delighted I was able to recruit Heather to Options for
Homes. She brings the right mix of development smarts and social conscience that
Options needs to reach the next stage of growth,” Labbé says.
Already, Tremain is setting the bar high stating “within three
years, we expect to be delivering 1,000 condo units a year, priced under the
average market price of housing in the GTA.
People should have the chance to buy a home, at an attainable price, and
build equity for their futures. With the
Options for Homes model, it is possible to make the dream of affordable home
ownership a reality. We want to reverse this unfair trend towards wealth
inequality in our society.”
Tremain comes to Options’ Toronto head office from Vancouver,
where she was a principal of Urban Fabric Group, a consultancy that advises
non-profits on their real estate strategies.
She was also a founder of Vancouver’s first green building development
and consulting company, reSource Rethinking Building, which developed an
innovative model for affordable ownership. Her projects have received numerous
awards from the Urban Development Institute (BC), Canada Mortgage and Housing
Corporation (CMHC), as well as the Mayor’s Environmental Award in Vancouver. In addition, she was the creator and producer
of the internationally broadcast television series, Healthy Homes, seen on HGTV
in North America.
In relocating to Ontario, Tremain is returning to the part of the
country where she was raised. “I am
excited to be in Toronto. I think the conditions are ripe here to really raise
the bar and make beautiful and affordable condominium homes available to even
more people in this dynamic city. In
Toronto, I sense that we have all the necessary building blocks to scale up
affordable housing production – demand, political support and a strong developer
- in Options for Homes,” says Tremain.
About Options for Homes
Options for Homes is Canada’s largest
non-profit delivery agent of affordable home ownership. Now in its 21st year, Options creates ownership opportunities for households with
incomes as low as $30,000 per year by providing purchasers with down payment
assistance. Since the first development in Toronto’s Distillery District,
Options and its affiliates have created homes for over 6,500 households using a
unique housing model. Options for Homes is about to break ground on two new
projects in Toronto that together will enable 525 families to own their own
homes.
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Media
Contact:
Anthony Westenberg
Options for Homes
416-867-1501 ext. 239
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