A PMQ (Permanent Married Quarters or Private Married Quarters) is military housing located near Canadian military stations provided to families of

Canadian Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force. ...

service personnel. Married quarters are now called Residential Housing Units (RHUs). Military housing is managed by the

Canadian Forces Housing Agency The Canadian Forces Housing Agency is a special operating agency that manages military housing on behalf of the Canadian Department of National Defence for members of the Canadian Armed Forces and their families located on wings and bases. Esta ...

(CFHA).Brewster, Murray. The Canadian Press. ‘’Up to 1,500 military housing units sit empty, auditor general says’’. February 2, 2016
Retrieved 31 May 2017

Purpose and culture

After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, service personnel returning to Canadian military stations, which were being expanded and modernized, needed accommodation for their families and so the Canadian government began providing housing. Military family housing neighborhoods often have churches, schools, banks, service stations, recreational facilities and stores.Canadian Military Police Virtual Museum
Retrieved 29 May 2017 PMQ housing, now called Residential Housing Units (RHUs), consists of apartments,

row house In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house (British English, UK) or townhouse (American English, US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings party ...

s, duplex or

detached houses A stand-alone house (also called a single-detached dwelling, detached residence or detached house) is a free-standing residential building. It is sometimes referred to as a single-family home, as opposed to a multi-family residential dwelling ...

. Family size and availability dictate what type of housing is allocated. Base housing is convenient because military members move frequently and so members do not have to be concerned with constantly selling and buying a house; members only need to pay rent and utilities. Living in PMQs/RHUs is also convenient since personnel are typically close to work. Harrison, D. and L. Laliberté. ''No Life Like It - Military Wives in Canada''. James Lorimer & Company, Toronto, 1994. pg 69-72.
Retrieved 29 May 2017Lament for the PMQ
Retrieved 29 May 2017 The nature of the neighborhood is such that there is social support. Children of military personnel also have a bond because of what they have in common.

Current status

Currently CFHA houses 17% of eligible CAF members in Residential Housing Units (RHUs). As of January 2020, CFHA had a net vacancy rate of 7%. At this time roughly 0.5% of units were held offline for disposal purposes, 1.5% for recapitalization projects, and 1% for betterment/lifecycle projects. Accommodation in the private sector is becoming popular because rents are competitive, and many service personnel prefer to buy so that they can develop

equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership * Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the dif ...

in their homes. In general, PMQs/RHUs have undergone renovations since 1995 when the Canadian Forces Housing Agency began managing the units. Since most PMQs were built in the 1950s, many were built without basements or garages. The Canadian Forces Housing Agency has made several improvements to the portfolio. In 2016, the federal auditor general found that the Department of National Defence (DND) is unaware of how many PMQs/RHUs it needs. The auditor general also found that rents have fallen to below-market levels for its 11,858 units (now 11,665 in 2019), which is unfair to those renting privately.

References

External links

Canadian Forces Housing Agency
{{Canadian Forces Residential buildings in Canada Neighbourhoods in Canada Canadian Armed Forces

Purpose and culture

Current status

See also

References

External links