MONTREAL -- Quebec announced on Thursday its decision to put $71.5 million towards an action plan that aims to make sure all Quebecers are housed once July 1 rolls around.

The funds will be put towards emergency aid for municipalities, rent supplements, loans for rent with no interest, and financial support for households waiting to move into their main residences. 

A $21.5 million investment will see that 1,800 households in need are able to pay their rents through emergency rent supplement units that will be made available over the year. Municipal housing offices will meet the pressing needs of 1,600 households who would otherwise be left homeless come July 1, by letting them pay a rent that is equivalent to 25 per cent of their income, which is the same as social housing. An increase in the ceiling for elligible rent is planned to make searching for housing easier, too. 

“We are entering this period of July 1, which marks an intensive phase of search for housing for several Quebec households,” said Finance Minister Eric Girard in a press release on Thursday. “As we have done on several occasions so far, we will continue to support the population; this time, by adding a significant number of rent supplement units that will be made available to low-income households.” 

A group that brings together renters’ associations in the province said it’s happy with the government’s decision to increase the rent ceiling when it comes to eligibility for the emergency rent supplement, calling it a “necessary measure due to the explosion in rent prices across the province.” But the group is concerned that the plan doesn’t include any “medium or long-term measures” that would extend the moratorium on evictions, which is set to end in July. 

"With the recent resumption of hearings at the Régie du logement, we fear an unprecedented wave of evictions,” the group’s spokesperson, Maxime Roy-Allard, said in a press release on Thursday. “We are asking Minister Andrée Laforest to extend the moratorium on tenant evictions by 6 months.” 

The group is worried that several evictions will result in many people looking for housing at the same time, which could prove problematic given that the province’s vacancy rate is experiencing record lows. The COVID-19 pandemic has added pressure on the rental market too, the group says. 

“Finding accommodation is already a perilous undertaking,” Roy-Allard said. “Some tenants will have to decide to rent above their means to avoid ending up on the street. We are asking the Minister to review the rental assistance loan program so that it becomes a subsidy.” 

The government also announced on Thursday that 200 units will be reserved in Montreal for people experiencing homelessness, “to facilitate their social integration.” An additional $7.4 million will be given to social services who will help assist in the transition.

“As July 1 approaches, these rent supplement units and the support of people experiencing homelessness by health professionals are invaluable,” said Health Minister Danielle McCann. 

Municipalities whose vacancy rates are at two per cent or less will be able to keep benefiting from the emergency assistance program reactivated last year through the province’s housing corporation, which lets municipalities pay for part of the costs associated to temporary accommodation, moves, and storage. 

FOR HOUSEHOLDS AFFECTED BY COVID-19

The province’s housing corporation is still offering tenants who’ve been financially impacted by COVID-19 interest-free loans in the amount of $1,500 (two months’ rent). Requests must be made by July 15, and the loan is repayable in August of 2021. 

People who were supposed to move into their main residences but had to postpone due to COVID-19 are still entitled to reimbursements for temporary accommodation, storage, and moving costs, the government says.

People who need help with housing are being asked to visit this website to find resources near them.