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Comment: What I am missing in this debate is a full spectrum housing solution. All we hear from the Liberal and Conservative candidates is that they are going to build more houses. Who is going to benefit from building more houses? The developers, of course. Is this going to lower the price of houses? I doubt it. Otherwise the Conservatives would not be promising no-GST for first-time buyers.

There are many Canadians (and many voters) who live in rented residences. As we are submerging deeper in the economic crisis, the landlords continue to implement aggressive rent increase policies. We have never had so many landlords applying to the Landlord & Tenant Board for rent increases above guidlines quoting “Capital expenditure work done in the residential complex” as a reason and justification for substantial rent increases. In the case I am familiar with, this work included maintenance of the physical integrity and safety of the building and compliance with housing standards as well as balcony window and door replacement and replacement of some other windows – things that every applying or resident tenant has a reasonable right to expect without paying extra and above the regular rent for it.

Even though the landorld in his application states that none of the capital expenditures relate to non-residential portions of the complex or to other residential complexes, almost all of the repairs and replacements are being done in the general areas of the building or on its outside elevation. All fall under the City Building Standards By-laws and, as such, are a responsibility of the landlord. Replacement of depreciated parts and equipment inside the actual rental units (apartments) was not offered and was usually denied or ignored by the landlord, when requested by tenats.

As a result, tenants are being forced to indefinitely finance the work that increases the value of the landlord’s property without any compensation or incentive offered by the landlord in return. The Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA) does not protect the tenants and allows such one-sided extortion to take place. It seems unjust and politically incorrect that such initiatives are allowed to take place during uncertain and difficult economic times.

Another urgent issue is the increasing abolishment of rent control that has already been implemented for buiildings built after 2018, as well as arbitrary and uncontrolled rent increases for new tenants moving into vacated rental units. In many rental properties, rent has doubled or trippled during the last 20 years and this tendency is not slowing down. Tenants are unable to move to less expensive apartments because everywhere they go as “new tenants” the rent is much higher than the one they are currently paying. Senior citizens are especially vulnerable in this situation, as their pensions do not increase adequately to compensate them for real inflation and above guidline rent increases.

Taking under consideration the expected deepening of economic crisis and our standard of living, government regulations restoring rent control and legislating rent freezes are urgently needed to prevent a looming crisis in this area of housing policies. So far, only the NDP leader has mentioned this topic during the current campaign but we need a firm and repeated commitment on his part.