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Posts Tagged ‘Affordable housing’

National Housing Day of Action – November 18, 2016

Posted in Activism, ACTO, Affordable housing, National Housing Day of Action, Uncategorized, tagged , , on November 12, 2016| Leave a Comment »

The Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario (ACTO) is organizing a National Housing Day of Action on Friday, November 18, 2016, 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM EST.
Refer to: http://www.acto.ca/

Description
Food, water and shelter are some of the most fundamental human rights, yet Canada is facing an affordable housing and homelessness crisis. Everything begins with housing – without it, no one can truly live life with dignity.

The Canadian government has promised to fix the affordable housing crisis with Canada’s first ever National Housing Strategy. On November 22nd, they will announce what they have heard people across Canada say is needed in a National Housing Strategy. We are calling for the government to ensure our National Housing Strategy will guarantee everyone the right to safe, adequate, and affordable housing.

Make your voice heard. Together let’s make a commitment that we will hold the government accountable.

You can access the ACTO flyer for this event at this link: nhd_flyer

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ONTARIO PROVINCIAL ELECTION 2011

Posted in Affordable housing, Economy, Ontario Provincial election 2011, Residential Tenancies Act, Seniors housing, Vacancy Decontrol, tagged , , , , , on September 22, 2011| 4 Comments »

The 2011 Ontario Provincial election will take place October 6, 2011

At this time of fiscal constraints, inflation, jobless rate, environmental concerns and continuing economic uncertainties, the daily lives of many Ontarians are affected adversely.  In particular, many tenants seeking affordable housing face tough choices trying to keep a roof over their heads and feeding their families.  In this election it is critical that candidates seeking your support find creative (more…)

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Seniors and Looming Housing Crisis

Posted in Affordable housing, Baby boomers, Housing waiting list, Income inequality, Low income seniors, Mixed-use housing, Pensions, Rent-geared-to-income, Seniors housing, Subsidized housing, tagged , , , , , , on November 27, 2009| 18 Comments »

Despite the ominous forecasts and dire warnings about the increasing seniors population and the burden that will place on social services we don’t hear much about practical solutions to deal with this challenge. Given the fact life expectancy has been steadily increasing, we have to accept there is a crisis looming that will impact not only pensions, health and (more…)

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Tenants should ask for a bailout too!!!

Posted in Activism, Affordable housing, Bailout, Canada's Housing Policy, Environment, Home ownership, Politics, Seniors, Seniors housing, Tax breaks, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 15, 2009| 5 Comments »

By I. Aagaard, Guest Contributor

 

Hi there:

 

I’m back! Me, with the previous Sustainable Affordability and MISSING: National Housing policy in Federal Elections! contributions. This time I’m here with a suggestion: That tenants collectively approach Ottawa and Queen’s Park for financial help so that we, too, can do our part in saving or creating jobs during these tough times.  After all, if GM and Chrysler, to name a few, can get help from Messrs. Harper and McGuinty, then why can’t we?

 

Think about it! If our respective governments are prepared to help bail out big companies that are poster boys for a capitalist society, then (more…)

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Terminating Tenancy Agreement prematurely…

Posted in Above Guideline increase, Annual Guideline Rent Increase, Bed bugs, Eviction, Landlord and Tenant Board, Lease Agreement, Legal Assistance, Municipal Licensing and Standards, Noise bylaw, Noise Complaints, Ontario Tenants Rights, Pests, Problem Landlords, Problem tenant, Rent Bank Program, Rental Lease Agreement, Tenancy Agreement, Tenants boot camp, Terminating Lease agreement, Vacancy Decontrol, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 10, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Sometimes we find ourselves in a situation that is beyond our control and have to terminate a rental lease agreement early. In the present economic climate there will probably be an increasing number of renters needing to end their lease/ tenancy agreement early. It could be that laid off or underemployed renters will be seeking less expensive accommodation to survive the downturn in the economy. Some tenants may have found more suitable accommodations and others may be faced with the prospect of becoming homeless due to the economic downturn. Tenants may have to relocate for a new job. It may be that they want to move because of NOISY TENANTS or ‘harassment by a tenant’ and the fact that the landlord is not taking their complaints seriously. Check Municipal Licensing & Standards (Chapter 591 Noise Bylaw) for more detailed information on noise violation. 

 

A tenant may also be concerned about safety and security in their building if they have been a victim of robbery, burglary or break-in and the landlord has not responded adequately. Or there may be existing tensions or conflicts due to other violations of the RESIDENTIAL TENANCIES ACT such as malfunctioning utilities and outstanding major repairs, or Cockroach and bed bug infestation that the landlord ignores. There violations can make your unit uninhabitable. Naturally tenants would want out of their lease/tenancy agreement as soon as possible. There could also be any number of personal (more…)

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AFFORDABLE HOUSING INITIATIVES . . . City of Toronto

Posted in Affordable housing, Building Maintenance, Canada's Housing Policy, City Hall, City of Toronto, Developers, Economy, Home ownership, Housing waiting list, Rent-geared-to-income, Subsidized housing, Tax breaks, tagged , , , , , , on November 18, 2008| 2 Comments »

The City of Toronto’s Affordable Housing Office has been involved in various housing initiatives to make life easier for renters in the GTA with low or modest incomes .  The initiatives include various strategies that would increase the supply of affordable rental housing and also provide opportunities for low-income renters to purchase a home.  Here are some examples of the City’s affordable housing initiatives:

1. Rental Housing
The City of Toronto’s Affordable Housing Office has a project in place to increase the number of affordable rental units available to renters with modest incomes. This ‘affordable rental housing’ project consists of 35 rental buildings under development and as of September 2008 a total 6 were completed.  You can view a list of the ongoing building and (more…)

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ELECTION IS OVER . . . now what?

Posted in Activism, Affordable housing, Canada's Housing Policy, CMHC, Economy, Politics, Rent Control, Residential Tenancies Act, Tax breaks, tagged , , , , , , , on October 26, 2008| 1 Comment »

 

In Beaches-East York the incumbent Liberal MP, Maria Minna, is once again heading back to Ottawa to represent us. The East York Tenants Group congratulate her.

Now to the business of getting some concrete action from our newly re-elected federal representative and the newly formed federal government.

Although our recently re-elected MP is in the opposition, tenants in Beaches-East York have certain expectations with regard to alleviating hardships faced by tenants, who by the way, comprise a huge segment of the residential households in Beaches-East York.

In the weeks preceding the election we raised a number of important tenants’ issues, not least of which is ‘affordable housing’. Two of the main factors in realizing ‘affordable housing’ are:  i) an adequate supply of rental apartment buildings and/or, ii) bringing back ‘rent controls.’  Several community groups and organizations have raised these issues time and again with politicians. The East York Tenants Group e-mailed political representatives at all levels of government (more…)

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– FEDERAL ELECTION: Are Tenants Invisible?

Posted in Activism, Affordable housing, Canada's Housing Policy, Developers, Politics, Tax breaks, tagged , , , , , on October 3, 2008| Leave a Comment »

 

We have less than 2 weeks remaining before the federal election on October 14, 2008.  Many tenants in Beaches-East York are struggling to make ends meet due to rising unemployment and underemployment. We are about to experience a huge leap in our overall cost of living due to the downturn in the global economy. This means many tenants will find it even harder to pay market rents as the present economic crisis deepens. So why isn’t the issue of ‘affordable housing’ addressed by the candidates? Is it because ‘tenants are invisible’?

 

A closer look at the housing system put in place by the federal government provides clues as to why the tenant population has become invisible. Several decades ago the federal government put in place a housing program that distanced them from the thorny issue of ‘affordable housing’ for renters. The program focused more on the private market and the ownership sector. The responsibility for the rental market sector was downloaded to the provincial and municipal governments but that responsibility is (more…)

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