`GETTING MORE SUPPLY ... IS CRITICAL'
Shortages from housing availability to labour are top concerns of new CHBA president
Once he was hit by the real estate bug, there was no going back.
Since then, Miles Kohan has been involved in getting more than 3,600 local families into new homes.
Now, Kohan's scope of work has increased as the president and CEO of Edmonton's Milestone Builder Group — comprised of Marcson Homes and Park Royal Homes — deals with a workload change order that recently crossed his desk: being named president of the Canadian Home Builders' Association board of directors.
“It's a unique opportunity to interact with our members from coast to coast,” said Kohan of his new role. “While many of the big issues impacting the industry are Canada-wide, each town and city has its own nuances and variations, and as a grassroots organization one of CHBA'S strengths is that those regional differences are recognized and addressed.”
Those issues, he said, include housing affordability and a housing supply shortage.
“Canada has been chronically underbuilding for years, and we've all seen the impacts that lack of supply has had on home prices recently,” said Kohan. “New federal initiatives like the Housing Accelerator Fund, which aims to get more market-rate housing supply built by incentivizing municipalities, will be important as we seek to increase housing starts.”
The federal government, he noted, has estimated that to overcome Canada's housing supply deficit there is a need to double housing starts and build 3.5 million homes in the next 10 years.
“To do it, though, we'll need collaboration from municipalities and we'll also need to address the labour shortages in the residential construction industry that's impacting both new home construction as well as renovations,” said Kohan. “Getting more supply online is critical in the years to come to improve affordability, and will be a priority in terms of advocacy and action for the association.”
MOVE IN READY
This isn't Kohan's first rodeo when it comes to the CHBA.
“Becoming the CHBA national president (of the board of directors) comes after years of active involvement within the association, so that by the time you're president you're very well-versed in current issues affecting the residential construction industry,” said Kohan. “I'm no exception. After years of being active at the local association in here in Edmonton, I then became involved at the provincial level, and from there the national level.”
He's also lived in Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Calgary, in addition to Edmonton, which will work well as he tries to nail down solutions during his one-year term.
“As national president, my responsibility is to help further the national priorities while representing the boots-on-the-ground members who are working hard to provide Canadians with the type of homes they need, at prices points they can afford, where they want to live,” he said.
HOME WORK
It was the 1990s and Kohan worked with motivational speaker Anthony Robbins in his franchise network. “While promoting his products, someone challenged me to put my money where my mouth was and market a real estate project,” recounts Kohan.
“That was where I got bit by the real estate bug, and found I had a real passion for the industry.
“When I started out, I remember first walking through a show home and being just `wowed,' and I remember thinking how cool it was that someone could come up with these amazing looks and ideas,” said Kohan.
“Ultimately, I just wanted to be a part of that, and personally I was driven to find security for myself and my family in terms of a longterm career.”
Once he had his foot in the door his goal was to keep improving.
“I ended up pursuing my MBA after I had already landed my dream job as a general manager for a large building company,” said Kohan. “My thinking was I need to bring something more to the job than just taking over the reins from my predecessor, so I worked to get the educational backing.”
EDMONTON BOOSTER
For Kohan, Edmonton is Canada's best city.
“We have a downtown on the move, concerts, an amazing river valley and trail system, and of course the Alberta Advantage when it comes to high wages and low taxes,” said Kohan.
He said Edmonton has weathered the ebbs and flows of the housing market fairly well, and he believes the uncertainties that came with the pandemic are levelling out, providing for a more stable environment.
At Milestone, which he led to a Canadian first, where it became the country's only builder to ever win the pinnacle industry awards of Builder of the Year at the local, provincial and national levels all in the same year, he said the company is switching gears.
“Our immediate focus is to be best-in-class for move-up buyers by implementing a high-end scale of products and preplanned options, while maintaining the value created by production building,” said Kohan.