JOSHUA ALLAN
The 1510 West
Staggering rental increases in the West Island is emerging as the top issue facing tenants in the West Island, according to a spokesperson for a new group aimed at helping renters.
“It’s the hot topic that everybody’s calling about, that everybody’s struggling with,” said Lily Martin, a community organizer with the West Island Tenants Action Committee.
And with good reason.
Rental rates have been steadily increasing in the West Island in the last few years, according to data from the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal.
Between 2019 and 2022, the average monthly rent has seen double-digit increases in many places – form a low of nine per cent in Beaconsfield, 23 per cent in Pointe Claire to a whopping 67 per cent in Ste. Anne de Bellevue.
Putting that into real dollars, the average renter in Ste. Anne, for example, went from paying $780 a month in 2019 to $1,302 a month in 2022. Many renters have also been hit with subsequent increases in the last two years since these statistics were published.
The data also shows that the highest average rent recorded in the region was in Pointe Claire, at $1,507 a month in 2022.
Martin pointed out that around 40 per cent of renters in the West Island are living in “unaffordable housing.” This refers to having to pay rent that costs tenants 30 per cent or more of their gross household income.
To get a better picture of the issues facing tenants in the region, the West Island Tenants Action Committee, which refers to itself as CALODI, the acronym of its French name, Comité d’acion des locataires de l’Ouest de l’Île, launched a survey last month.
It is the first such survey to focus solely on tenants in the West Island, Martin said. It will serve to analyze the main issues facing the tens of thousands of renters in the area, as well as to familiarize the population with services offered by the group, which aims to provide renters with a platform to share the challenges to renting in the region. It is an initial step toward what the group aims to do – advocate for renters’ rights.
“We want to really ensure that this portrait that we’re putting together is as complete as possible,” Martin said. “We want to try and reach people who might not already be aware of our services, people who might be in more vulnerable situations.”
The results of the survey will help CALODI define its priorities, setting the stage for “broader advocacy, raising awareness for tenants’ issues and working to mobilize and organize tenants in the West Island,” she explained.
The survey asks tenants about the composition of their household, the condition of their building or unit, if they feel their rights have been respected by their landlord and their overall experience in renting.
So far, the group says about 100 respondents have completed the survey. Martin said that while this is solid progress “we’re obviously hoping to get a lot more.”
The survey takes about five to 10 minutes to complete and will run until October. It can be accessed on CALODI’s website or Facebook page.
Launched in June 2023, CALODI has worked with hundreds of tenants across the West Island. The group has been educating renters about their rights and resources at their disposal through webinars, workshops, booklets and a help line, which can be accessed by calling 514-505-0840.