Waterloo, Ontario, has awarded $2.25 million to a local non-profit to buy three apartment buildings on Herbert Street, keeping 14 rental units affordable for the next 25 years.
The City of Waterloo announced the Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition Grant on September 16, 2026. The money goes to Thresholds Homes and Supports Inc., a not-for-profit that supports people with mental health conditions across Waterloo Region.
The three Herbert Street buildings have 17 apartments, and 14 are considered affordable. The grant means those units will stay below market rent for 25 years, protecting current tenants from big rent increases or renovation evictions.
Funding comes from the City’s share of the federal Housing Accelerator Fund, a $4.4 billion program to tackle housing affordability. Waterloo is only the second municipality in Ontario to run this type of acquisition program for rental buildings.
Thresholds works with 885 clients in Waterloo Region, Guelph-Wellington, and Dufferin-Caledon. The purchase also creates a chance to add more affordable units in the future and improve accessibility in some apartments.
Waterloo Region has more than 10,000 households waiting for subsidized housing, so keeping existing affordable units is a key part of the local housing plan.
