The delays in the renewal of leases within the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal (OMHM), which risks putting tenants in debt without their knowledge, is “unacceptable”, according to the office of the Minister of Municipal Affairs and the Housing. In Montreal, it is indicated that “it is a priority for our administration that each person can find housing. »
Posted at 5:10 p.m.
“We are currently checking with the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal,” said the Cabinet of Andrée Laforest, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing of Quebec.
Wednesday, The Press indicated that 3,065 leases were overdue for their renewal at the OMHM. Consequently, thousands of tenants are not aware of the new amount of their rent and risk finding themselves in default of payment, without their knowledge. The situation has persisted for at least a year.
What’s more, the OMHM affirmed that no evictions had taken place because of delays in the city’s HLMs. However, tenants benefiting from a rent supplement program (PSL), ie nearly 16,000 people in Montreal, were not counted in this report. At least one person appears to have lost their home in circumstances related to delays in renewing leases, pointed out The Press.
“According to the information we currently have, the teams are in contact with the tenants concerned to reassure them about the situation. No one will lose their modest accommodation because of administrative delays,” assures Minister Laforest’s office.
Montreal is following up
On the Montreal side, the mayor’s office indicated that “the priority of our administration is to ensure that each person can find accommodation, as demonstrated by all our efforts deployed on the 1er July to support tenants in need. »
The OMHM is responsible for renewing leases, particularly for emergency PSLs from 1er July. “We work closely with the OMHM and we expect tenants to benefit from the services and quality of life they deserve,” continued Valérie Plante’s administration. “We are going to make sure that the OMHM can do everything possible to achieve this. »