(Montreal) More than 300 people attended a free information meeting on tenants’ rights, organized by Montreal deputies from Québec solidaire (QS) in a church basement on Laurier Street, in Montreal, in company of Manuel Johnson, lawyer specializing in housing law.
For the parliamentary leader of Québec solidaire (QS), Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, the fact that there are so many people present on a sunny Sunday is a sign that “things are going bad” in terms of housing.
The objective of the event was to raise awareness of the rights of tenants in Montreal, an important first step, according to Mr. Nadeau-Dubois. “The rights we have become real just when we have the real capacity to defend them, and the first step to defend them is to know them,” he affirmed, while mentioning that the offices of QS were inundated with calls for help on this subject.
“What happens in Montreal, too often, is David versus Goliath situations, tenants who do what they can, but who too often do what they do to big speculators armed with very powerful lawyers,” said Mr. Nadeau-Dubois.
Also present, the solidarity deputy Andrés Fontecilla reiterated the intention of creating a rent register that would allow consulting the prices of housing that a person wishes to rent.
“This is an essential measure to control abusive rent increases and the CAQ has always refused this fight, and we will not give up,” he said, to the applause of the crowd. .
Presentation of Me Johnson
Me Johnson made a summary presentation on the right to housing during which he described the current rental market as unbalanced. “It’s always the owners who have the big end of the stick,” he said. According to him, only a handful of lawyers specializing in housing law operate in Montreal and they are all overwhelmed.
He affirmed that the right to remain in place constituted the cornerstone of the right to housing, meaning that a person can stay in their home as long as they wish, with certain exceptions.
He added that he was seeing more and more cases of speculative maneuvering. “When people have been there for a long time, pay low rent […] the owner has every interest in kicking out this tenant and re-renting the accommodation at double or even triple the price,” he lamented.
“That’s how they do their speculative maneuver. They will buy a building, throw out as many people as possible, double the rents, borrow money on the new value of the building, buy another building and start the cycle again. »
He warned those present at the meeting, of all ages, of cases where owners suggest their tenants leave while the latter carry out work, by having them sign an agreement with often insufficient compensation.
He recalled that the obligations of owners at this time are much greater. “Go see a lawyer, if you have to, and if you can find one. Don’t fall for it and [ne signez pas] an agreement like that. »
The first questions from the public mainly focused on questions surrounding a lease transfer, the scope of which was reduced by Bill 31, and excessive rent increases.
Possible expansion of the Françoise David law
The former spokesperson for Québec solidaire, Françoise David, was present at the meeting and spoke to the media before the session. She welcomed the fact that the Legault government intended to soon call QS Bill 198, which expands the scope of the Françoise David law, adopted in 2016, in order to better protect seniors from evictions.
“It’s not a panacea. That doesn’t solve all the problems. But for older tenants, and it’s mainly women we’re talking about, it would give one more tool to defend themselves against evictions.”
The objective is to broaden the criteria to include people aged 65 and over who have lived in their home for at least five years. Currently, only seniors over the age of 70, who have a very low income and who have lived in their home for more than ten years, are protected by the law.
Mme David said she was “rather angry” when Housing Minister France-Élaine Duranceau refused the amendments presented by QS during Bill 31.
She hopes the bill will pass. “I’m going to be there to make sure we get to the end of the process,” she said.