Quebec puts money into housing
Still refusing to admit there’s a housing crisis, Quebec is putting $60 million into subsidizing housing for people left stranded this Moving Day.
I’ve recently become aware, through some work I’m doing, of the startling number of flats left empty around my neighbourhood in Villeray. I don’t mean Airbnb type rentals, although I see those too, but places where the whole flat, sometimes the entire plex, is standing empty and clearly has been uninhabited for some time.
I understand that if a landlord leaves a place fallow for a year they can charge a much higher rent, but these places don’t look fixed up – if anything, they look abandoned, often partly stripped of doors or paint, like someone failed to get funding for a renovation. But I can’t explain it. You can get a grand a month now for even a minimally functional living space in a nice neighbourhood, so why are these landlords leaving these spaces empty?
Kevin 09:56 on 2021-06-11 Permalink
While the Shiller-Lavys and the slumlords of the world are in it for every red cent, many landlords are just looking for some way to offset their mortgage with the least amount of hassle.
I have neighbours who own a duplex that is long since paid off- they live in half, rent out the other half. Their tenants own a chalet in the Laurentians.
When the lockdown the tenants decamped for the chalet and several months ago officially joined the masses who have left Montreal for good — the permanence of telework means there is no need to return.
The landlords are not in a rush to fill that space because they’d rather have a good (ie quiet) tenant than someone who will annoy them. They’ve rejected at least 4 people already.
Kate 09:59 on 2021-06-11 Permalink
True, my old neighbour Nick, who died at age 99 not long ago, told me that his duplex (one of the nicer ones on the street) was paid up long ago, and he didn’t need the hassle of looking after a tenant.
I occasionally thought wistfully of what that upstairs flat must be like. The house was sold by his relatives virtually minutes after Nick’s death, so I guess someone will find out.
But I’m telling you, a lot of living space is in limbo around here. I wish I could think of a means of persuading these owners to let people live in them again, because in a few spots it’s actually hollowing out the vibe of the neighbourhoods. Who wants to live in a row next door to three or four totally empty duplexes, whether as owner or tenant?
What if the city had a bureau that would administer these disused flats on behalf of the landlords? It could pay them a percentage of the rent it collected, and look after the tenants’ affairs for them. Maybe? Is this done anywhere?
Derek 11:22 on 2021-06-11 Permalink
>Who wants to live in a row next door to three or four totally empty duplexes, whether as owner or tenant?
Or put another way, who wants to live above or below noisy tenants? As you alluded to, some landlords don’t want to put up with the hassle of finding good tenants or dealing with problematic ones. Evicting tenants is extremely difficult so it’s understandable that some landlords would think twice about renting out if they don’t have to.
Kevin 11:54 on 2021-06-11 Permalink
I think the other aspect is that a lot more people than we’ve realized own or rent multiple properties, and so the change in work has let a lot of them live where they want to, instead of where they have to.
Most people don’t want to return to commuting to an office 5 days a week, but how quickly will they change jobs instead of appeasing a pissant manager who insists they have to work at the office in order to be properly “supervised?” I’ve lost track of the number of people I know who have started new jobs and are never expected to actually be anywhere except online. And I know a lot of companies that rent office space are abandoning it because it’s hella cheaper to have employees work at home.
We could very well see more household properties for sale next spring than ever before.
dmdiem 12:06 on 2021-06-11 Permalink
You’d be astounded how much real estate is just used to park money. I lived in a building with about 100 units and less than half were actually occupied. The administration had a serious problem with leaking water tanks. Since no one was taking care of the apartments, tanks would rupture over time and no one would notice until it actually flooded an occupied unit. The loft next to mine was empty for nearly 2 decades.
I saw a time lapse video of Vancouver taken from one of the condo towers downtown pointing at a bunch of other towers. It was taken over the course of about a week. It showed blinds opening and closing. Lights being turned on and off. Barely a third were occupied.
mare 14:19 on 2021-06-11 Permalink
@Kevin “They’ve rejected at least 4 people already.”
If they have advertised the apartment as being available to rent (add, sign, viewings) all those 4 people can start a case with the Regie (now named something else long), and have a good chance to win. In Quebec the landlord is *obligated* to rent to the first person(s) who says “yes, I want it”. The only reason to refuse after that is if their credit isn’t good or have verifiable bad references…
This law exists to prevent discrimination, but applies to everyone.
I have no idea what the penalties are when the apartment has been rented by the time the tribunal gives its verdict.
Kate 15:30 on 2021-06-11 Permalink
mare, the only times I’ve heard of that rule being pursued effectively were either on race or on the presence of kids. In a few cases, it was a setup: potential tenants who were Black went in and were told it was already rented, followed by equivalent white people who were then offered the apartment. A gotcha, made a point, but I don’t know if it really helped anyone in the real world.
The other incidents were when a landlord told a potential tenant he didn’t want someone with little kids, and it was stated explicitly enough to be pinned down.
I feel there’s a difference between the situation of a company renting out apartments en masse in large buildings, and someone renting out the single upstairs flat they have in their own duplex. I can totally see a landlord who lives in a duplex, for example, not wanting little kids stamping around overhead. Yes, not fun for people with kids, but the owner has the right to peaceful enjoyment as well.
I suppose this does help explain in some cases why perfectly fine apartments are being left empty.
Derek wrote in response to me:
>>Who wants to live in a row next door to three or four totally empty duplexes?
>Or put another way, who wants to live above or below noisy tenants?
There’s a happy medium. I’m glad my own block is fairly densely occupied. Kids play up and down the alley, people have conversations on front and back porches. This may be noise in one sense, but it’s life going on, you know?