Housing Minister France-Élaine Duranceau says she is open to putting in place measures to prevent tenant evictions by landlords who want to turn their homes into Airbnbs, and other changes to better protect tenants.
“Vulnerable people who are thrown out of their homes after years, for what I would call ordinary reasons, I find it deplorable and I do not intend for it to continue,” said Minister Duranceau on Friday. at a press conference in Laval where she inaugurated social housing.
She explained that she is currently reviewing all the rules affecting landlords and tenants, with her parliamentary assistant, the member for Labelle Chantale Jeannotte.
“Whether it’s the question of evictions for Airbnb, the F clause, wild renovictions, we will act on it”, assures Mme Duranceau.
Clause F allows the owner of a new building, for a period of five years, to impose on his tenants a rent increase that is not subject to the calculation grid of the Administrative Housing Tribunal, which translates often by large increases.
“I am open to anything because I am in the process of consulting. I don’t want to do things piecemeal, and I don’t want it to take months and months. We will wait for the recommendations,” added the Minister.
On Wednesday, Quebec solidaire called on the government to ban tenant evictions in cases where landlords want to rent their homes short-term instead on platforms like Airbnb, citing two recent cases in Montreal, one in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. and one in Old Montreal.
France-Élaine Duranceau also commented on the negative reactions to her government’s decision, announced last week, to end the AccèsLogis program for financing social housing.
“The name of the program is not important. What Quebecers want is for us to deliver housing, for there to be results,” she said.
She explains that the government will continue to create social housing through subsidies for the construction of projects and through its rent supplement program, which provides that low-income tenants pay no more than 25% of their income.
As for the new Quebec Affordable Housing Program (PHAQ), intended to financially support affordable rental housing projects for low-income households, which has drawn its share of criticism, the Minister promises an improved version to correct its defaults.
Mme Duranceau also promises to finance projects that have been promised funds from the AccèsLogis program, but are still waiting for their money to build housing.
The Minister of Housing made the comments at the inauguration of the Val-Martin project in Laval, where 124 dwellings were rehabilitated and 235 new units were built, thanks to federal, provincial and municipal funding. Ottawa invested 33.6 million, Quebec 35.5 million and Laval 20.3 million. A final building currently under construction will also house the new Simonne-Monet-Chartrand community center, in which the City has invested 25 million.