Housing Crisis: Quebec is Changing How Rent Increases are Calculated

This year, the TAL recommended a rent increase average of 5.9%, which is the highest jump in 3 decades since 1988. Tenants across Quebec are worried that if the rent keeps increasing in the way it has, then they will soon no longer be able to afford to live in their homes.

In the Quebec Official Gazette published on April 17th of this year, the housing minister of Quebec, France-Élaine Duranceau, proposed a change that will affect the way rent increases are calculated in her attempt to partly address the housing crisis that is currently going on.

The updated rent calculation method will consider the following factors:

• The average Consumer Price Index (CPI) in Quebec for the reference year, along with the three prior years
• Changes in municipal tax rates
• Fluctuations in school taxes
• Adjustments in insurance expenses

According to a spokesperson for the housing minister, using this calculation, the new rent increase for this year would have been 4.5%. However, they have failed to mention that this new policy would in fact, benefit landlords in the long-term due to the rent increase being tied to renovations and the rising cost of living. For example, with this new policy, landlords could start renovations, then use those costs to justify the rent increase for tenants. Then, the rents would increase and the rising cost of living also increases, creating a never-ending cycle of rent increases on top of rent increases.

It is also important to realize the following: the price of renting does not go back down. It will keep going up, even after the property has been renovated. So the tenant is paying for the renovations, and will keep paying for them indefinitely as long as they renew their lease.

In a statement from the Regroupement de comités logement et associations de locataires du Québec (RCLALQ), they state that “[This change] opens the door wide for landlords to increase their profits on the backs of tenants, with rent increases now based on the average rise in the cost of living as well as the cost of major renovations.”

According to Statistics Canada, asking rents in Montreal have gone up almost 71% since 2019. Read more here (CBC news).

To learn more about the proposed changes, read CBC’s news article here.

If you’re looking to get involved or show support, you can connect with your local housing committee. You can look for your local housing committee on the RCLALQ’s website here.