Brief: Burnaby basement suites should be the homeowners choice

Every basement suite is needed in Burnaby’s rental market today, where rents are astronomical and supply is scarce.

Editor:

Subject: “‘There must be a better way’: Basement suites up for debate in Burnaby.”

I am a homeowner in my 40’s who bought my parents house in central Burnaby as a discount on a home purchase. My rebate is effectively the prepaid rent for temporary living in our legal “brother-in-law” (2 bedroom + 2 bath basement suite). My parents bought the house in the 1990s.

In fact, a basement suite is a huge mortgage helper for homeowners who have bought very expensive homes in Burnaby. A basement can be designed as a highly desirable living space, just like my parents did! All of this within existing properties. With so many hills in Burnaby, many homes may even have a walk-in basement suite.

My Opinion: Let homeowners decide what to do with their home, within the bounds of building codes and bylaws.

I think the article is very biased against basement suites as traditionally has been the town of Burnaby. Coun I don’t think so. Gu speaks for the average basement suite renter. Every basement suite is needed in the rental market today, where we find astronomical rents and low supply. I bet you can find for every housing advocate against basement suites 10 advocates who want Burnaby to grow up and enable basement suites to create affordable living spaces.

In terms of carbon footprint, renovating an existing basement would be far less carbon intensive than any demolition/replacement of a new build. If you build a foundation, it’s not much more work to turn it into a comfortable basement apartment. Again, let the homeowner decide.

Andre Woodruff

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