Community activists, including former MNA Francoise David, are accusing a property owners' group of encouraging discrimination against seniors despite a new law that aims to protect them.

Tenants applying for leases say they are being asked their age, which is an unlawful act.

Those same tenants say they are being denied lodging after landlords learn their age.

This comes despite Bill 492, which was proposed by David when she was a sitting MNA and passed unanimously in the National Assembly.

The legislation sets up specific conditions that limit when landlords can evict tenants over the age of 70 if they have lived in the apartment for more than 10 years.

“I know that many owners are good people, they have old people as tenants and it's okay everything is going well, so why encourage the bad owners? The CORPIQ has to say it's illegal to ask the age of the people,” said David.

A survey conducted in January for CORPIQ, the Quebec Landlords Corporation, showed that since the law came into effect landlords are more reluctant to rent to older people, with 51 per cent saying they would refuse or would hesitate to have them as tenants.

Association spokesperson Hans Brouillette said they do provide necessary legal information to their members but would not expand on the point.

“We agree with our members. Even if the law has been adopted, is enforced, we agree with our members who choose their family first,” he said, adding that the law makes it difficult to repossess an apartment for a young family member.

He added that it is also harder to sell a property if an elderly person implicated by the law already lives there.

“This changes everything because we are no more the owners of our own building because we cannot do what we need to,” he said.

Housing advocate Martin Blanchard said the organization should educate members instead of saying the law is a deterrent.

"I think the CORPIQ should instead themselves say 'oh we have this person hat is saying they will discriminate? Oh well this is illegal and you cannot do that," said Blanchard.

His group has filed a case with the Quebec Human Right Commission asking it to review several cases of alleged discrimination.

"Instead of educating their own members, they are saying this is a fact and now this will be more and more the case," said Blanchard.

Last year Blanchard's group was able to convince the rental board to overturn a notice of eviction for retired photographer Pierino Di Tonno.

His landlord had tried to evict him from the apartment where he had lived for more than 40 years.

Meantime, Violette Deprais was evicted after 34 years in her apartment, when investors bought her building.

“This is what the law has been made for. It's to stop speculators that will buy buildings where there are old people, kick them out and resell them at a very high price,” said Blanchard.