The Quebec government has adopted a new housing bill that will restrict tenants from transferring leases and preventing landlords from increasing rents. The new law will allow landlords to reject a lease transfer for any reason, unlike previously when only serious concerns about a prospective tenant could justify a rejection. This allowed new tenants to benefit from the existing rent while preventing landlords from seeking out preferred tenants and capitalizing on the vacancy.

Though tenant associations have fought hard against the lease transfer change, calling it a “clear set-back for tenants rights” at a time when affordable housing is desperately needed in Quebec, Housing Minister France-Élaine Duranceau stood firm in her decision.

“This story of lease assignment or shopping between tenants is an obstacle to the property rights of property owners,” she argued last June when Bill 31 was first proposed. “The landlord owns the building, they invested in it and took the risks, and it should be up to them to decide who lives there.”

Meanwhile, liberal housing critic Virginie Dufour said in a statement that the new law missed an opportunity to address the province’s housing crisis and could lead to abuses by landlords. But proponents of the bill argue that measures have been added to limit abusive evictions; for instance, if a tenant receives an eviction notice and does not respond by the deadline, they will be deemed to have declined it by default. It will then be up to the owner to demonstrate that the request for eviction meets the criteria.

According to the Tribunal administratif du logement website, “The law allows the landlord of a dwelling to evict the tenant in order to subdivide, substantially enlarge or change the use of this dwelling.” It will also oblige a landlord who evicts a tenant to compensate up to one month’s rent per year of continuous residence in the dwelling, up to a maximum of 24 months.

For more information visit: Tribunal administratif du logement (gouv.qc.ca)