Quebec adopts bill restricting lease transfers, often used to limit rent increases
The Quebec government adopted a controversial housing bill Wednesday that will restrict a popular tool tenants have used for years to limit rent increases.
The new law will allow landlords to reject lease transfers for any reason. Previously they had to show they had serious concerns about the new tenant, such as their ability to pay or problematic behaviour.
The transfer of leases allowed new tenants to benefit from the existing rent and prevented landlords from jacking up the price, but Housing Minister France-Elaine Duranceau has said lease transfers aren't the right tool to control rents in the province.
Community groups had fought against the lease transfer change, and opposition parties proposed amendments to the bill, but Duranceau stood firm on the provision.
The Regroupement des comites logement et associations de locataires du Quebec, a group representing housing groups and tenants associations from across the province, said in a statement it was a "shameful day" for the province. It said the law is a "clear setback for tenants' rights" and does nothing to respond to the housing crisis in the province.
"The great imbalance between the power of landlords and the rights of tenants is growing day by day," said Cedric Dussault, spokesperson for the group. "Instead of protecting people who are suffering, we have a government that further suffocates them by strengthening the powers of those who benefit."
Dussault said the crux of the housing crisis has to do with a lack of rent control. While the new law strengthens clauses requiring transparency from owners against abusive rent hikes, Dussault said it doesn't go far enough because most tenants have no way of knowing if information provided by the landlord about previous rents is accurate.
During the study of the bill, Quebec solidaire proposed amendments that would protect seniors from evictions, but those were rejected by the government members.
Duranceau has defended the law, saying it includes several provisions to protect renters. For example, the burden of proof for evictions is shifted to landlords instead of requiring tenants to prove they did nothing wrong. The law will require landlords to pay evicted tenants the equivalent of one month's rent for every year they have lived in the dwelling.
Also, a renter who doesn't respond to an eviction notice won't automatically be believed to have accepted it, as is currently the case.
Liberal housing critic Virginie Dufour said in a statement the law missed an opportunity to address the province's housing crisis. She highlighted provisions granted to municipalities that she said could lead to abuses.
The law will allow municipalities with more than 10,000 people and a vacancy rate of less than three per cent to bypass urban planning rules for buildings with at least three units. Municipalities can also deviate from their rules for projects that are mainly composed of subsidized or affordable housing.
The adoption process took eight months. Last October, the committee looking at the bill was suspended so several articles could be rewritten, drawing criticism from opposition parties that Duranceau, a rookie cabinet minister, was disorganized.
Duranceau said a few days after the delay that if the law was not adopted by the end of 2023 the opposition parties would carry the "burden" of the harm done to vulnerable tenants, leading opposition members to walkout on the committee, calling the minister's move arrogant and amounting to blackmail.
Have a news tip? We'd like to hear your story. Please send an email to MontrealDigitalNews@BellMedia.ca
-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Feb. 21, 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadian former Olympic snowboarder wanted in Ontario double homicide: DOJ
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an 'innocent' couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
Ontario school board trustees under fire for $100K religious art purchase on Italy trip
Trustees with an Ontario school board are responding to criticism over a $45,000 trip to Italy, where they purchased more than $100,000 worth of religious statues.
A photographer snorkeled for hours to take this picture
Shane Gross, a Canadian marine conservation photojournalist, has won the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Tobacco giants would pay out $32.5 billion to provinces, smokers in proposed deal
Three tobacco giants are proposing to pay close to $25 billion to provinces and territories and more than $4 billion to some 100,000 Quebec smokers and their loved ones as part of a corporate restructuring process triggered by a long-running legal battle.
More Trudeau cabinet ministers not running for re-election, sources say shuffle expected soon
Federal cabinet ministers Filomena Tassi, Carla Qualtrough and Dan Vandal announced Thursday they will not run for re-election. Senior government sources tell CTV News at least one other, Marie-Claude Bibeau, doesn't plan to run again, setting the stage for Justin Trudeau to shuffle his cabinet in the coming weeks.
Robert Pickton's handwritten book seized after his death in hopes of uncovering new evidence
A handwritten book was seized from B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton's prison cell following his death earlier this year, raising hopes of uncovering new evidence in a series of unprosecuted murders.
Former members of One Direction say they're 'completely devastated' by Liam Payne's death
The former members of English boy band One Direction reacted publicly to the sudden death of their bandmate, Liam Payne, for the first time on Thursday, saying in a joint statement that they're 'completely devastated.'
Israel says it has killed top Hamas leader Yayha Sinwar in Gaza
Israeli forces in Gaza killed top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, a chief architect of last year's attack on Israel that sparked the war, the military said Thursday. Troops appeared to have run across him unknowingly in a battle, only to discover afterwards that a body in the rubble was Israel's most wanted man.
Indian government employee charged in foiled murder-for-hire plot in New York City
The U.S. Justice Department announced criminal charges Thursday against an Indian government employee in connection with a foiled plot to kill a Sikh separatist leader living in New York City.