Alberta Advantage Immigation Program

[Jeremy Heaman]

I have been researching into the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program, and some of the changes that were announce mid February. I would love hear other thoughts and opinions on how to leverage this, and other programs to grow rental portfolios. I am not looking for political opinions, and will not be engaging in political discussions. I have spoken about this briefly on the real estate investing morning show, and this is slightly more in depth look into the subject.

Recently, the Canadian federal Government announced a ambitious plan to bring in 1.3 million new immigrants over the next three years. This 1.3 million immigrants is broken down into 4 categories, Economic, Family, Refugee and Protected Persons, Humanitarian and Other. Between 2011- 2016 Canada has received 1.2 million new immigrants.

Economic is skilled or semi-skilled workforce that could be used to increase GDP growth. The target is 232,500 for the next year.

Family is people who have marital or blood ties to Canada, The target is for 103,500 for the next year.

Refugees and Protected Persons is on the forefront of the media as worldwide conflicts rage on. The target is 59,500 for the next year.

Humanitarian and Other is targeted for 5500 for the next year.

Quebec and Post-secondary students/graduates are not included in these targets.

The Alberta government has stated its intentions to take "more than it's fair share". And has created some more specific programs within the AAIP. There are 3 streams devoted to workers, and 4 devoted to entrepreneurs. I will be focusing on the more rural aspect as I believe there are less resources available for investors looking to invest in rural communities.

From 2011 to 2020 Alberta has received between 34,541 to 57,841 immigrants annually. This is compared to 12,499 births, and a net interprovincial immigration of 4489. This Indicates immigration as the leading reason for population increases. https://www.alberta.ca/populat...

To maintain current market share of immigrants, Alberta would be receiving just over 40,000 immigrants which is around historical norms. With a targeted increase of almost 50 percent per year, over the next three years, Alberta could expect to see almost 60,000 immigrants per year based on historical trends. 

The Rural renewal stream is designed to help revitalize communities outside of Edmonton and Calgary. Alberta currently has 7 of the 10 fastest shrinking communities in the country, which is believed to be due to increase urbanization. "The Rural Renewal Stream supports the attraction and retention of newcomers to rural Alberta through a community-driven approach that supports local economic development needs and contributes to the growth of the community. The Rural Renewal Stream empowers rural communities to recruit and retain foreign nationals to live, work and settle in their communities."
https://www.alberta.ca/aaip-ru...

"The Rural Entrepreneur Stream is an economic immigration program. Entrepreneurs who want to start a business or buy an existing business in a rural Alberta community can submit an Expression of Interest."
https://www.alberta.ca/aaip-ru...

Immigrants looking to move under these programs must stay for 18-24 months depending on the program to earn their citizenship/permanent residence status. In this timeframe I believe it likely that they would be renting instead of buying because they are new to the area, and even if with significant resources from their home countries, would likely want to maintain liquidity of capital.

Some communities such as Clairesholm and Grande Prairie have programs to target immigrants, such as the GPCN to help attract potential new residents, and help them get settled. This program also helps them get setup for school, and find housing. https://www.gpcn.ca/ 

Clairesholm is part of the rural and northern immigration pilot program. Clairesholm received 5,000 applicants in 2020 alone under the program. Only 20 of the applicants could be selected. This is in comparison to the 3,800 citizens currently residing in the community. I could not find a reason for the bottleneck of applicants under this program, although I suspect it could be due to a limitation of infrastructure and resources.

https://www.immigration.ca/rur...

I believe this, combined with the current debate of increased infrastructure by the province and Elon Musk for rural highspeed internet offer an opportunity in rural communities not historically seen. The increased use of technology such as zoom make it possible to work anywhere. 

How do you think investors could leverage this program to grow portfolio? Is there a a larger opportunity within this program I may have missed? I would love to hear your thoughts on the subject.