The scope of the assignment
of lease officially reduced
(Quebec) With the adoption of her housing law, Minister France-Élaine Duranceau officially reduces the scope of lease assignments, but she also gives "superpowers" to cities to build housing faster and adds compensation to the law when a landlord evicts a tenant, for example.
The Lease ControversyAs soon as her bill was tabled in June 2023, the Minister responsible for Housing had created controversy with her desire to attack the assignment of leases. For tenants' rights organizations, this is a rare "rent control" measure in the midst of a housing crisis, when the cost of housing is skyrocketing.
Previously, a tenant could choose to assign their lease to another person. The owner could only refuse with a serious reason, for example, his insolvency. Now, the landlord will be able to refuse and get the property back to carry out work, for example. The organizations are concerned that this will lead to rent increases.
For Minister Duranceau, however, it is "not up to the tenant to control the rent increase for the next person." She was the target of a lot of criticism when she declared, in an interview with Noovo, that "a tenant who wants to do this, let him invest in real estate", but she stayed the course and kept this measure.
'Superpowers' to mayors to build more housingThe study of Bill 31 was a special one. After public consultations, the commission adjourned last October, and Minister Duranceau added several clauses to the bill.
With one of these amendments, it will give a "superpower" to cities: that of overriding the "molasses" of urban planning regulations to put the brakes on the "step in my backyard" and authorize the construction of high-speed housing, especially high-rise housing. Opposition parties have expressed concern about the emergence of urban warts and a return to favouritism and collusion. Quebec has the support of the mayors, who applauded the initiative.
Compensation of one month's rent per yearThe bill will require landlords who evict tenants to compensate them for one month's rent for each year of continuous residence in the dwelling, with a minimum of 3 months and a maximum of 24 months, plus "reasonable moving expenses."
It is also the landlord who will now have the responsibility to justify his decision to evict a tenant by going to the Administrative Housing Tribunal. It is therefore a reversal of the burden of proof. This is what made France-Élaine Duranceau say that the opposition parties will have to bear the "burden" of tenants in a situation of eviction.
"If the bill is not passed by January, they [the opposition parties] will be carrying the burden on their shoulders by the time the lease renewal notices start coming in. They will carry the burden on their shoulders that we are not there to protect people who are in difficulty," said the Minister responsible for Housing last October.
Another punitive measure is that the law seeks to deter landlords from inflating rents by threatening them with a fine if they do not meet "clause G", where they must indicate the lowest price paid for rent in the last 12 months. If they fail to do so, they could now be fined.
No extension to the "Françoise David law"Despite Québec solidaire's attempts, Minister Duranceau refused the amendments to expand the scope of the "Françoise David law" to better protect seniors from deportation. Seniors' rights groups such as FADOQ also called for the law to be expanded by lowering the eligibility thresholds from age 65 to five years of rental and increasing the qualifying income provided for by law. Minister Duranceau justified this refusal by stating that her law puts in place mechanisms to protect all tenants from evictions, regardless of their age.
Predictability for new housing leasesWith her law, Minister Duranceau will force owners of new construction to "ensure predictability" for their tenants by indicating to them at the signing of the first lease "the increases they could expect for the first five years," according to her office. Previously, "Clause F" allowed them to increase leases without restriction for five years, to cushion the costs of unforeseen construction.
The Lease ControversyAs soon as her bill was tabled in June 2023, the Minister responsible for Housing had created controversy with her desire to attack the assignment of leases. For tenants' rights organizations, this is a rare "rent control" measure in the midst of a housing crisis, when the cost of housing is skyrocketing.
Previously, a tenant could choose to assign their lease to another person. The owner could only refuse with a serious reason, for example, his insolvency. Now, the landlord will be able to refuse and get the property back to carry out work, for example. The organizations are concerned that this will lead to rent increases.
For Minister Duranceau, however, it is "not up to the tenant to control the rent increase for the next person." She was the target of a lot of criticism when she declared, in an interview with Noovo, that "a tenant who wants to do this, let him invest in real estate", but she stayed the course and kept this measure.
'Superpowers' to mayors to build more housingThe study of Bill 31 was a special one. After public consultations, the commission adjourned last October, and Minister Duranceau added several clauses to the bill.
With one of these amendments, it will give a "superpower" to cities: that of overriding the "molasses" of urban planning regulations to put the brakes on the "step in my backyard" and authorize the construction of high-speed housing, especially high-rise housing. Opposition parties have expressed concern about the emergence of urban warts and a return to favouritism and collusion. Quebec has the support of the mayors, who applauded the initiative.
Compensation of one month's rent per yearThe bill will require landlords who evict tenants to compensate them for one month's rent for each year of continuous residence in the dwelling, with a minimum of 3 months and a maximum of 24 months, plus "reasonable moving expenses."
It is also the landlord who will now have the responsibility to justify his decision to evict a tenant by going to the Administrative Housing Tribunal. It is therefore a reversal of the burden of proof. This is what made France-Élaine Duranceau say that the opposition parties will have to bear the "burden" of tenants in a situation of eviction.
"If the bill is not passed by January, they [the opposition parties] will be carrying the burden on their shoulders by the time the lease renewal notices start coming in. They will carry the burden on their shoulders that we are not there to protect people who are in difficulty," said the Minister responsible for Housing last October.
Another punitive measure is that the law seeks to deter landlords from inflating rents by threatening them with a fine if they do not meet "clause G", where they must indicate the lowest price paid for rent in the last 12 months. If they fail to do so, they could now be fined.
No extension to the "Françoise David law"Despite Québec solidaire's attempts, Minister Duranceau refused the amendments to expand the scope of the "Françoise David law" to better protect seniors from deportation. Seniors' rights groups such as FADOQ also called for the law to be expanded by lowering the eligibility thresholds from age 65 to five years of rental and increasing the qualifying income provided for by law. Minister Duranceau justified this refusal by stating that her law puts in place mechanisms to protect all tenants from evictions, regardless of their age.
Predictability for new housing leasesWith her law, Minister Duranceau will force owners of new construction to "ensure predictability" for their tenants by indicating to them at the signing of the first lease "the increases they could expect for the first five years," according to her office. Previously, "Clause F" allowed them to increase leases without restriction for five years, to cushion the costs of unforeseen construction.
