Manitoba housing advocates welcome minimum standard rights for tenants

Housing advocates are welcoming proposed measures from the federal government that would see minimum standards of rights for tenants all across the country.

Among the protections expected to be included in the federal government’s upcoming budget include allowing renters to build credit when paying their rent on time, a $15 million fund to tenants’ rights advocacy groups, and a Renters’ Bill of Rights.

The Renters’ Bill of Rights will see landlords be required to reveal past rental pricing, set a national standard for lease agreements, and target renovictions, evictions of tenants when a landlord renovates a unit.

“We want to make sure those rent increases as a result of that aren’t excessive and aren’t pushing people out,” said Yutaka Dirks, Chair of Right to Housing.

“We have a patchwork of protections whether you live in Manitoba, Ontario, Newfoundland, even if you have the same landlord and you are renting the same size apartment you might have totally different protections depending on where you live.”

Dirks says while the federal government’s recent announcement on tenants’ rights is encouraging, he also wants to see greater work done to include more affordable housing stock across the country.

“We hope that together with this, that the federal government does increase funding for specifically rent-geared to income housing so that tenants who are living with really low incomes, who can’t afford apartments, are able to find a place to live,” said Dirks.

Tony Irwin with the Canadian Federation of Apartment Associations says he favours supports for tenants but is also hoping landlords are also consulted with as Ottawa works to try to make housing more affordable.

“I think it’s clear, we do need more purpose-built rentals,” said Irwin. “While rents have gotten unaffordable for many, there are also challenges for many who operate.”

Tenants Rights’ organizations are also hoping they are part of that consultation process, with Dale Whitmore from the Canadian Centre for Housing saying the federal government is just scratching the surface.

“You would think eviction would be a last resort. It would seem kind of obvious to us, but it is not in many provinces and territories, in some it’s almost treated as a default. A Renters’ Bill of Rights at the very least would need to include protections against excessive rents,” said Dale Whitmore, the director of policy and law reform at the Canadian Centre for Housing Rights.