Rental housing tenants in Quebec will soon face their highest rent hikes in three decades.
Radio Canada reports Quebec’s rental tribunal, known in French as the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL), has published calculations for landlords to use before sending rent increase notices to their tenants. TAL’s recommendations could result in tenants living in homes where heat is not included seeing their rent increase 5.9%, compared to an average of 4% last year. Where heating is included in the rent, a 5.9% rent hike would mean someone paying $1,200 in monthly rent would soon pay up to $1,270 – the amount could be higher depending on apartment upgrades and property taxes.
This marks the highest recommended increase in that category in at least three decades, according to TAL figures dating back to 1988. The new guidelines are set to begin on April 2 for a 12-month period.
However, many Quebec landlords have charged above the TAL recommendations. Rents in Montreal soared an average of 7.7% in 2023, high above TAL’s recommended rental increase, while in some cases rents were up by 10% in units with a new tenant.
Under the provincial law, a Quebec tenant is allowed to refuse a rent increase from a landlord. If the two parties cannot agree on a number, the landlord can file an application with the TAL to modify the lease within a month of receiving the tenant’s reply. But this system is often skewered in favor of landlords – during 2024, TAL granted an average increase of 6.9% on the cases it was asked to judge, the highest increase in at least 15 years.
Tenants’ rights advocates have criticized TAL’s new recommendations, saying it would create additional financial strains on low-income residents. Several groups, including Quebec Solidaire and Comité d’action de Parc-Extension in Montreal, called for new rent control laws.
