Why Montreal Tenants Across The City Are Planning To Withhold Their Rent

Ask a Montrealer about the housing market and you'll get one of two answers: "It's better than Toronto/Vancouver/New York," or "It's really, really bad." They're both right, in some ways, but some believe that "really, really bad" answer will soon become the only one without further protections for Montreal tenants.

Various measures show that it's already looking dire for the city: despite occasional drops from one month to the next, average rents have been rising steadily year over year.

A Key Cheap Rent Tool Under Threat

But more urgent even than rent hikes is the looming threat of Bill 31, proposed legislation that would undermine a tenant's right to a lease transfer.

This is bad news for those who previously relied on lease transfers to access lower rents and prevent hikes from landlords: transferring your lease means your landlord doesn't get a chance to increase it when the tenancy changes hands.

Teva Ross, a representative of Montreal's Autonomous Tenants' Union (SLAM), called Bill 31 "unacceptable" in a phone call with MTL Blog, saying that it showed how landlords and the provincial government are working together "to disempower tenants."

Citywide Strike?

In response to both the proposed legislation and the rising cost of rent, SLAM is organizing a citywide rent strike in the hopes of putting power in the hands of tenants.

"We want Bill 31, if it's passed by the time we go on strike, to be repealed," Ross said. "We are also asking for a rent freeze. Those are our general demands."

The union will only call a strike if 5,000 Montrealers pledge to withhold their rent, an ambitious goal but not one without precedent. During the early days of COVID-19, United States tenants withheld rent en masse, and Ross, believes the same could happen here.

Critical Mass

With that critical mass of people refusing to pay rent, SLAM argues, the housing tribunal won't be able to process the sheer volume of cases, providing some cover for those participating in the strike.

"You'd also have 5,000 people who can participate in eviction defence actions and support each other in other ways," Ross added.

For those worried about the liability of being brought to court over unpaid rent, the union points to a unique legal protection in Quebec: "If you bring your rent to your court date, or pay it back beforehand, with added interest in court fees, you can't be evicted," Ross told MTL Blog.

So striking doesn't mean you get an influx of disposable income, but SLAM's position is simple: that's not the point.

"If we don't respond strongly [to Bill 31], there's no reason to believe that we won't continue to see legislation that disadvantages us as tenants and that we won't fall into the same spiral that Vancouver and Toronto have and entirely lose our standing as a relatively affordable city," Ross said.

"So I see this as quite an urgent matter."

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.