11/19/2025
A Canadian entrepreneur named Marcel LeBrun is using his wealth to benefit his New Brunswick community by offering a place to live to the many unhoused people in his city of Fredericton.
LeBrun took the profits he made from selling his social media monitoring company, investing $4 million of his fortune to start the 12 Neighbours Community, described as “a dignified micro-home community where housing is just the beginning.”
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported that within the last year, 235,000 people have experienced homelessness in Canada, and LeBrun wanted to take action to help. He pledged to build 99 micro-homes for people who are homeless, factory producing 1 tiny home every 4 business days.
Along with LeBrun’s own personal contributions, the project has received grants and monetary support from the local and national government, sending $12 million to the 12 Neighbours Community. It only took a few years, and now the community is in full swing with over 100 240-square-foot homes available for people in need.
Each micro-home has a full-service kitchen, a living area, a bedroom, a full bathroom, and even a small front porch. They also come with a deck and solar panels.
Additionally, rent is kept at 30% of each resident's income. Most pay a maximum of $200, including all utilities, every month. “Marcel is literally a Godsend,” Marla Bruce, who lives in the second tiny home built in the neighborhood, told the University of New Brunswick’s alumni magazine. “A year ago, I was homeless. Now I have a home, I'm not on the street, and I have peace because every place where I stayed before was temporary. Here, there is very much a sense of community. Marcel has a heart and a passion for what he is doing.”
The 12 Neighbours Community seeks to provide more than just a roof over people’s heads — LeBrun is also fostering social connections and providing rehabilitative services.
Our vision is to see people overcome barriers to a full and independent life,” the 12 Neighbours website states. The micro-home community provides substance abuse counseling services, educational opportunities, and on-site job training. The support networks are described as being “person-centric, trauma-informed, recovery-oriented, and strength-based.”
“Housing is just the beginning,” their website proclaims. “We are also community builders, where the community becomes a healing agent.”
LeBrun told Maclean's, “We have people who have been run over by trauma, by substance abuse, by all of these things. It’s about excavating that person, buried under their circumstances, little by little.” 12 Neighbours residents also have access to on-site help so they can obtain GEDs or find work.
The location includes an enterprise center with various business ventures, where residents can work, earning wages and marketable skills.
A major roadblock to reestablishing oneself after being homeless is finding work. LeBrun is dedicated to helping people get fully back on their feet by offering “low-barrier, patient and progressive employment opportunities” to support people’s re-entrance into the workforce. Micro-home residents can work at Neighbourly Coffee, a pop-up coffee shop, or at the community’s silk printing business, crafting and selling screen-printed tote bags and clothes emblazoned with hopeful and inspiring messages.
12 Neighbours advocates for safe, accessible, and permanent housing as a human right and as a stepping stone for a flourishing life. LeBrun is doing his part to combat a major social issue, yet not everyone believes that his micro-home approach is the best practice to do so.
LeBrun upholds the idea that the 12 Neighbours model is 'the best model to achieve lasting transformation in reducing poverty and homelessness.' As he sees it, “We wanted to make a dent in the challenge that we have here in Fredericton… If we want to actually make a meaningful difference, we have to build some houses.” LeBrun maintains that the built-in support networks within the 12 Neighbours Community are the most effective route to reconnection.
Residents also have access to addiction recovery programs, personal development plans, and support workers. The community itself is close to bus routes, grocery stores, and other commercial access points, all of which allow residents to rebuild their livelihoods.
While LeBrun’s approach might not be perfect, it is an actionable attempt at easing endemic social inequalities and helping people live the best versions of their lives.
