Whereas lower investment in rental housing stock over the past 30 years have resulted in a low vacancy rate and steadily increasing rental costs in many communities; And whereas market conditions have led to increased appetite for rental building owners to invest in upgrades to their buildings which provide improved unit quality, safety, and energy efficiency, but this creates the impetus for existing tenants to be evicted and subsequently experience challenges finding suitable and affordable replacement housing: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM call upon the Province to provide a funding model and regulatory framework to assist local governments in reducing the impact of renovictions on tenants while continuing to encourage investment in upgrading older rental housing; And be it further resolved that UBCM call upon the Province to increase the housing allowance portion of Income Assistance and Disability Assistance, as well as housing subsidies through BC Housing, to mitigate the impact of rising rental costs on low-income and vulnerable British Columbians.
Ministry of Municipal Affairs Housing Government knows that not enough has been done to help renters in BC. A key priority of our government is to amend the Residential Tenancy Act to provide stronger protection for renters. Options are being prepared to mitigate the impact on renters being evicted due to renovations and demolitions and ensure that landlords are following the law. The Residential Tenancy Act requires landlords to follow specific rules before ending a tenancy in order to do extensive renovations or to demolish a rental unit. One of the first actions of this government was to increase the support rates for people receiving income assistance by 100 per month, effective October 1, 2017; this a first step towards reducing poverty in British Columbia. This increase was applied to the support allowance to make sure the most number of people benefit from the investment. For people on basic income assistance this was the first increase in 10 years. Government will also engage with local governments on the creation of a BC Poverty Reduction Strategy with legislated targets and timelines. The Ministry has received UBCMs Housing Strategy and looks forward to continuing to work together on recommendations included in the report.