The Minister responsible for Housing, France-Élaine Duranceau, wants to convince more tenants to use the housing assistance services offered by the government. Last year, nearly 12,000 people used it in Quebec.
“If people contact us, we will be able to help them, if they don’t, we can’t do anything,” the minister declared during a press briefing in Quebec on Tuesday. “It’s rare that we won’t find.” »
Mme Duranceau wishes to raise awareness of what is called the “housing search assistance service” (SARL). This support service is offered by the Municipal Housing Offices (OMH). Since January, more than 5,000 people have used it across Quebec.
The SARL does not have housing as such, but can direct people to resources, explained the CEO of the Société d’habitation du Québec (SHQ), Claude Foster. For example, some people could have access to social housing, but they are unaware of it, he said.
The minister even urged journalists who are contacted by tenants in difficulty to refer them to the SHQ services. “I know people are calling on you. It is essential to direct them to the right resources. »
Does this mean that support services are underutilized? Mr. Foster doesn’t go that far.
The problem, he said, is that people wait too long to seek help. “The longer we delay, the more difficult it becomes. We want to make sure people can raise their hands right away,” he said. “There is no harm in doing that because the misfortune is when people think they are capable of finding a solution on their own and they will wait until the 1ster July. »
Several types of help
Concretely, the aid is similar to that offered last year. First, low-income people can have access to a monthly housing allowance of up to $170 per month.
Am I eligible for housing benefit?
OMHs also offer rent supplements to allow people to have access to housing that would otherwise be too expensive.
Added to this are the SARLs mentioned above, as well as emergency accommodation for homeless people on 1er July. Finally, the Société d’habitation du Québec offers a telephone help service seven days a week starting June 15 at 1 800 463 4315 (except June 24).
Françoise David Law
On Tuesday, Québec solidaire strongly criticized Minister Duranceau’s announcement. “Today’s announcement reflects the CAQ’s management of the housing crisis: proposing individual measures without tackling the heart of the problem,” argued the spokesperson. of the party on housing, Andrés Fontecilla.
As for the recent openness of the CAQ to an expansion of the law prohibiting the evictions of seniors, it has not had any notable results. Questioned about this on Tuesday, Mme Duranceau said he asked QS to “let her work.” “We will soon come back to the approach we recommend,” she added.