Winnipeg’s Saigon Centre to remain social housing if province takes ownership: Manitoba Housing

ManitobaManitoba Housing says tenants at a Balmoral Street social housing building serving Vietnamese refugees can stay put and rents won’t rise as the Crown corporation plans to take ownership of the Saigon Centre at auction later this month.Manitoba Housing says building’s base bid is $3 million, which is the amount owing on the mortgageCBC News · Posted: Aug 14, 2025 1:29 PM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours agoCarolyn Ryan, CEO of Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corp., says it plans to purchase the Saigon Centre social housing building at 458 Balmoral St. at auction on Aug. 26. She says the building is going through a foreclosure process, as the owners owe $3 million on the mortgage. (Google Street View)Manitoba Housing says tenants at a Balmoral Street social housing building serving Vietnamese refugees can stay put and rents won’t rise as the Crown corporation plans to take ownership of the Saigon Centre at auction later this month. Carolyn Ryan, CEO of Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corp., told CBC News on Thursday that the nearly four-decade old building at 458 Balmoral St. will remain as social housing if the sale — a mandatory part of the foreclosure process — goes through. She said the base bid is set at about $3 million, which is the mortgage arrears. “It’s unfortunate that we’ve gotten to this place, but the priority is to preserve this as a social housing asset,” she said, adding title conditions set when the building opened in the late 1980s state it must remain as subsidized housing. “All tenants have right of tenancy and rents will not change. This will just become a part of our larger social housing portfolio,” Ryan said, stressing that rents in the 54-unit building will continue to be geared to tenants’ income if the sale goes through. The building is set to go to auction at 10 a.m. on Aug. 26. Ryan said she doesn’t expect many other prospective owners to bid, as the building cannot be turned into for-profit housing. However, there are no prohibitions on who can buy it. Saigon Centre is owned by the Vietnamese Non-Profit Housing Corporation. CBC News reached out to the corporation’s lawyer, Vincent Bueti, but did not receive a response. More from CBC Manitoba: With files from Meaghan Ketcheson