Renter’s Bill of Rights Announcement – Part 4

The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, announced these measures from the upcoming Budget 2024 are to make the playing field fairer for renters and make it easier for them to become homeowners.
Justin has indicated that these are the steps that they will take:

• Launching a new $15 million Tenant Protection Fund
• Creating a new Canadian Renters’ Bill of Rights
• Making sure renters get credit for on-time rent payments

 
Now if we break down each point from a Manitoba Perspective.
  

• Launching a new $15 million Tenant Protection Fund. This would provide funding to legal aid and tenants’ rights advocacy organizations to better protect tenants against unfairly rising rent payments, renovictions, or bad landlords.

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In Manitoba – not sure which organization would be receiving these funds, since we already have RTB thru out Manitoba. So, I will say that no funding for this will come to Manitoba or if it does it will go to RTB, who already do a very good job of protecting the tenants.

Our pinion, when we read unfair rising rents, renovictions, or bad landlords. We think about all the unfair other costs that we have had to deal with and I don’t see Justin stepping in to help these situations, rising gas prices, cost of food, utilities etc.

So why is Justin calling out landlords, when the other business are able to raise prices in order to stay in business. I guess people do not see rentals as a business, even if they are owned by the province.

• Creating a new Canadian Renters’ Bill of Rights, developed and implemented in partnership with provinces and territories. This would require landlords to disclose a clear history of apartment pricing so renters can bargain fairly. We will also crack down on renovictions, create a nationwide standard lease agreement, and give renters more agency.

When I heard this one, I could not help but think really did you just say that. What I am referring to is the comment about bargain fairly. Again where else in Canada can you walk into a business and bargain over the price.

When was the last time you walked into a grocery store and ask them for a history of  the prices over the past couple of months, then bargain with them over the price of what you want to pay? Why would someone get to do this with a rental property?

Not sure what he was getting at with the comment of giving the renters more agency? I guess we’ll have to wait and see on this one.
 

• Making sure renters get credit for on-time rent payments. Renters deserve credit for the money they put toward rent over the years, especially when it comes time to apply for a mortgage for their first home. We’re going to amend the Canadian Mortgage Charter and call on landlords, banks, credit bureaus, and fintech companies to make sure that rental history is taken into account in your credit score.

Out of all of the points that were made about the Renter’s Bill of Rights – I am all in favour of this one – reporting the rental history.

However, Elite is already ahead of him on this one as we have already established a rental history reporting.

Join the other landlords that are using our FREE rent reporting service that allows landlords to report on a regular basis the status of the rents for their tenants. 

To learn more visit us at elitecra.com

The major flaw with Justin’s approach is that he is only targeting millennials and Gen Z, what about the renters that don’t have credit (ones that don’t work). How would you ever build a rental history for those that don’t work but pay their rent on time and are trying to get into a better place?
With Elite we allow all Landlords and tenants to establish a rental history. Which is a different approach then just targeting a certain age group.

As Landlord and a Business, we are like everyone else, we would like to know about the people we are allowing into our units. We would like to have tenants that will pay their rent, take care of our places. No different then someone looking to buy a house, car or get a credit card.

Like any other business there are good and bad landlords as well as good and bad tenants. Put when it comes to bad as we all know everyone gets painted with the same brush. 

With these posts we do try to capture both sides of the story.
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We welcome you comments.

Check back often as there is a lot more to come of this as the government pursuer's these measures.