It is MORE THAN TIME for highly profitable landlords to pay their FAIR SHARE and LOWER RENTS to provide “Affordable Housing”. Highly profitable landlords have relatively low costs per rental/apartment unit – can be as low as $344/month. (See NOTE A.)
“Affordable housing” is defined by the CMHC to cost less than 30% of pre-tax household income. See MAKE IT TOP PRIORITY: Affordable housing is key to community prosperity – the FRONTLINE needs it.
Don’t settle for “rent discounts” that will soon disappear and that are likely discounts from over-inflated “market rents” that few could afford anyways and at a time of high compensation and pay increases to landlords. (See NOTE B.)
Instead, ASK FOR and GET the following from landlords:
- “Affordable rent”. Calculate it based on 30% of your current pre-tax annual income; include it in the rental lease.
- 0% rent increase in 2020 – because we are in a “contraction/recession”. Note: It’s a long road to economic recovery, Canadian bank CEOs warn – Globe and Mail – April 8, 2020 and Alberta to face its ‘worst contraction’ ever, ATB chief economist warns - CBC – April 2, 2020.
- Annual AFFORDABLE rent increase “GUIDANCE” for existing and new renters to eliminate STRESS and LENGTHY rent increase “negotiations”. Rent increases should be calculated based on a 12-month average of Consumer Price Index as of July 1 for the following year. With additional increases for valid capital expenses by landlords that are NOT maintenance already paid for in rent. Landlords currently provide their investors with “GUIDANCE”: renters are the “original investors” – investing our lives and our money. (See NOTE C.)
- Tenant Loyalty Program: landlords should REWARD their tenants - including seniors (55+ years) who want to “age-in-place” - with lower rents/NO rent increases for long stays of 2+ years. Seems to be in alignment with Boardwalk REIT’s corporate performance objective to: “Reduce expenses through less turnover and longer tenancies.” (See NOTE B.)
This year, when making your renting decisions, BEWARE OF wolves in sheep’s clothing – including “rent discounts”: don’t settle for anything LESS than “affordable housing”. Matthew 7:15-20 is inspiring!
THANK YOU, fellow Canadians, for signing the petition!! It really does help. Let’s PROTECT RENTERS: let’s make it a WIN-WIN-WIN solution for Renters and Community as well as Landlords. Please pass the petition on to others!
Stay safe, stay healthy!
Anne
We the Courageous
NOTE A: See financial reporting of landlords, including:
- Boardwalk REIT: $506 operating costs per unit per month. $1,153 average rental revenue per unit per month. 56.1% operating margin. See LOWER THE RENTS to tenants of highly profitable landlords and Boardwalk REIT Live Life Elevated February 28, 2020 Q4 2019 Conference Call presentation, page 58.
- Canadian Apartment Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (CAPREIT): $376 average overall portfolio per rental unit cost per month (calculated at 34.7% of $1,084). $1,084 overall portfolio net average monthly rent. 65.3% operating margin. See CAPREIT 2019 Annual Report, pg. 1.
- Mainstreet Equity Corp.: $344 average operating expense per unit per month. $923 average rental rate per unit per month. 63% operating margin. See Mainstreet Equity Corp. 2019 sedar, page 15.
NOTE B: Boardwalk REIT Notice of Annual and General Meeting of Unitholders to be held on May 14, 2020 and Management Information Circular, including at pages 57-58, 74 - approximate 48% increase in total compensation for four Executives, from $2.17M in 2018 to $3.22M in 2019.
NOTE C: Boardwalk REIT 2019 Annual Report guidance for “Stabilized Building NOI Growth” for 2019 increases of 8.2% at pages 24 and 80 and 2020 Objectives for increases of 4% - 7% at page 80, despite COVID-19, at page 7. What does that mean for increases in rent?
Image by Sarah Richter from Pixabay.