As July 1 approaches, the organization is unveiling the results of its report on the situation of tenants in Sainte-Foy, particularly people of immigrant background and seniors.
We sometimes forget that the largest concentration of tenants from immigrant backgrounds in Quebec is found in the borough of Sainte-Foy-Sillery-Cap-Rouge.
According to the CLAQO report, 36% of households with an immigrant background say they have housing that meets their needs little or not at all.
“One in three people with an immigrant background say they have already been discriminated against in Sainte-Foy when looking for housing,” according to the CLAQO report. For 24 years, this non-profit organization has defended the rights of tenants and the living conditions of the residents of Sainte-Foy-Sillery-Cap-Rouge.
Data from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, between 2022 and 2023, illustrates an increase of 5.3% in the average rent in Sainte-Foy-Sillery. “An increase in prices and a drop in the availability of apartments,” laments Félix Marois.
Growing old in Sainte-Foy
The housing crisis also affects older people. The closure of many seniors’ residences in the area and the move online for services from the Administrative Housing Tribunal are causing “rental stress,” according to the community organizer.
“Just having access to your rights can be a really problematic issue, and then we see in Sainte-Foy more and more elderly people are having difficulty accessing their legal rights,” continued Mr. Marois.
According to CLAQO data, 75% of people over 60 pay 30% or more of their income for their housing. A “totally unacceptable” situation for the organizer.
“Social housing, the key to the solution”
The community organizer believes that it is essential to invest massively and that “20% of all rental stock in Quebec should be social housing.”
Still according to CLAQO, 80% of tenants support the construction of new social housing in their neighborhood.
The new project of 350 housing units in the Saint-Louis district, accelerated by the Marchand administration in May, does not excite Félix Marois.
“This kind of development will not succeed in helping the housing crisis in Sainte-Foy,” he says. If the government is in favor of using its powers to speed up the construction of new housing, it could speed up the construction of social housing.”
