Thousands of Montrealers protest new housing bill that would end lease transfers

Thousands of Montrealers gathered in front of Parc Metro station Thursday eveningto make it clear they don't want the provincial government to make it easier for landlords to refuse lease transfers.

TheCoalition Avenir Qubec(CAQ) recently tabled new housing legislation, Bill-31, which would make it harder for landlords to evict tenants but would also prevent tenants from transferring their leases.

Lease transfers, or lease assignments, have become a common way for tenants to control rentby preventing landlords from hiking prices between tenants.

"A lease assignmentis a tool that is supposed to help tenants to show solidarity with each other. Unfortunately, this is one of the last tools we have left to avoid price increases," said librarian and author Eli San at the protest.

"It is tragic that the government wants to take it away from us."

She says she loves Montreal, but if she had to move out of her place, she doesn't know if she'd be able to find a place she could afford on her own.

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Protesters pointed out how much rents have exploded in the city over the last few years, and waitlists for social housing aren't getting any shorter.

"It is a basic and vital need to be housed. I think the policies that have been in place for many years are making the crisis worse," saidve Deshaies, who lives in co-operative housing in Montreal's Village.

She says she left her previous apartment, which waspoorly maintained, as it was up for sale and was "probably going to be flipped."

"Human distress is terrible in my neighbourhood, we see it every day. It's frightening," she said.

"But these people gather in the street because they no longer have a place to live. It's very rough. Nothing is being done to help them out of poverty, and housing, well, that's the basis."

Legault'living in fantasy world'

PremierFranois Legaulthas been under fire forcomments he made earlier this weekabout Quebec's housing crisis.

Legault said Monday he believed last year's moving day went well and that no Quebecers were left without a place to stay. Hetried to walk back the comments, but some say he's disconnected from reality.

Qubec Solidaire's Gabriel-Nadeau Dubois says when it comes to housing, Legault is out of touch.

"Legault is living in fantasy world," he said. His party haslaunched a petition to block the end of lease transfers.

Housing groups challenged Legault's comments, pointing out that there were a reported 600households without a home after July 1, 2022.

Defending Bill-31, Quebec's housing minister,France-laine Duranceau, has saidlandlords take risks when investing in housing and should be able to pick who lives in their units.

But she toofaced significant backlash from housing groups and Quebecers when she said renters shouldn't be "using a right that isn't theirs" by transferring leases to keep rents low. She later apologized for "seeming insensitive."

Duranceau is also facingan investigation byQuebec's ethics and professional conduct commissionerwith respect to conflicts of interest.Duranceau hada professional meeting with her friend and business partner, Annie Lemieux, who acted in this context as a lobbyist with her and the minister responsible for seniors in December 2022.