In Québec we've had province-wide rent control since at least the early 70's. Landlords are allowed to raise rent annually up to a certain percentage determined by inflation (last year, up to 2.5%). Rent raises can also be appealed to the housing board if they seem unfair, or if the landlord has not been keeping up with maintenance. Prices can go up if significant renovations occur (which they almost never do), but even then costs must be split across all units in the building. In 10 years, across 9 apartments, I have not once had a landlord bother to raise my rent.
It's not a perfect system, but still today in Montréal you can get a $400USD 1 bedroom apartment in a good part of town, thanks to this system. It ensures that the working class can live near their occupation, and they don't have to commute from a slum neighbourhood outside the city. In many quartiers, you have the very poor and the very wealthy living side by side.
I believe absolutely rent-control (in tandem with a few other policies) has enabled Montréal to situate itself as a hotbed of creativity. We have one of the most dynamic and diverse art scenes in all of North America, and with a population on the island of Montréal still less than 2 million.
I pay $500 Canadian + electricity/heating ($80) / month for an apartment (half of top floor in duplex) in a good part of town, 20 minute walk from the very best part. That's 439.43USD including all utilities for a one bedroom, or '3.5' as it is called here (kitchen, living room, bedroom, bathroom).
& I know many dozens of people in the same scenario, or who pay less. There is definitely more expensive stuff out there, and you do need to hunt a little bit for this price (usually craigslist etc. is pricey), but I regularly see even bigger apartments go for the price I'm paying.
In fact I shit you not, my neighbour who has kept their place since the early 90s, pays 246.22 USD + electric for the same apartment as me. . .
>In fact I shit you not, my neighbour who has kept their place since the early 90s, pays 246.22 USD + electric for the same apartment as me. . .
Undoubtedly those that have rent controlled apartments do well. But that does not mean one can go and get an apartment and pay a rate similar to the one that they have.
Like I said, on Craigslist/Kijiji/etc it is difficult to find such a price, or when it goes online, it disappears very quickly. A price like this can be found by walking around and finding "à louer" signs and calling the number.
>But that does not mean one can go and get an apartment and pay a rate similar to the one that they have.
But when she dies (probably not far away), the place legally must be rented at the same price (+ inflation of one year), assuming no major renovations are undertaken. And if it get's renovated, the price can only rise to a certain point unless the whole building get's demoed. So someone will get it at about that price, eventually, unless the landlord illegally raises the price (which happens).
It's not a perfect system, but still today in Montréal you can get a $400USD 1 bedroom apartment in a good part of town, thanks to this system. It ensures that the working class can live near their occupation, and they don't have to commute from a slum neighbourhood outside the city. In many quartiers, you have the very poor and the very wealthy living side by side.
I believe absolutely rent-control (in tandem with a few other policies) has enabled Montréal to situate itself as a hotbed of creativity. We have one of the most dynamic and diverse art scenes in all of North America, and with a population on the island of Montréal still less than 2 million.
I definitely support this kind of legislation.