Petition updateRequire landlords to appear at House of Commons Review of Financialization & Rent Gouging“Urgent, urgent action to stop the harm and protect human rights” – re financialization of housing
Anne LandryCalgary, Canada
Mar 4, 2024

As was stated by Marie Josée Houle, Federal Housing Advocate on October 23, 2023 before the National Housing Council Review of financialization of purpose-built rental housing  Also:  “There are many actions that the [federal] government can take to reduce the harms of financialization of purpose-built housing and advance the progressive realization of the right to housing,”    The Hearing Record (WRITTEN and ORAL) of the National Housing Council Review of financialization of purpose-built rental housing is now public.  Please see MORE BELOW.

NO means NO.  In MY Calgary, in MY Alberta, in MY Canada we don’t HARM one person to benefit another.  PERIOD.  Enough is enough!  

It is MORE than time for the landlord CEOs + DATA to be summoned to the House of Commons – including to the House of Commons HUMA Committee (Members).  Please WRITE/CALL TODAY – see contacts further BELOW. Thank you for signing my CHANGE.ORG petition entitled:  Require landlords to appear at House of Commons Review of Financialization & Rent Gouging – with UPDATES.

Marie-José Houle, Federal Housing Advocate stated the following at the House of Commons HUMA Committee Review of financialization of housing, rent gouging, renovictions and related issues on May 9, 2023:

  • “…The key word in all of this is ‘harm’. This is why Canada needs to treat financialization as a serious human rights issue and also as a key component in addressing the housing crisis overall…it’s clear that this trend (financialization of housing) is violating people’s right to adequate housing in Canada, it’s contributing to housing unaffordability and it’s worsening housing conditions.  It is leading to evictions…[financialization of housing is]  also causing real harm to individuals, families and communities…When we realize the right to adequate housing for all, all of Canada benefits.  Our economy benefits, communities benefit and people benefit…”  [Emphasis added]

See also the comments of Marie-Josée Houle, Federal Housing Advocate before the National Housing Council Review of financialization of purpose-built rental housing during the public Oral Hearings  on October 23, 2023, including :

  • “…So what we know what we do know is that [financialization of housing] is a widespread problem that is affecting up to 30% of Canada’s purpose-built stock.  And then, when we look a little closer, we see how it’s causing harm to individuals, families, and communities.  We’re talking about people’s everyday lives. …It is clear that this trend [financialization of housing] is violating people’s right to housing in Canada…So this not only harms individuals, it also amount to retrogression on Canada’s human rights commitments, and retrogression is a legal term for backsliding on human rights…So the research confirms that financialization is causing the greatest harm to Indigenous and disadvantaged groups, such as seniors, low income tenants, people with disabilities, members of Black communities, recent immigrants and refugees, and lone parent families.  And financialization targets buildings that are undervalued, which typically means they are affordable with rents below market rents. And when these buildings are bought by financialized companies, it most often displaces disadvantaged communities.  Research provides clear evidence of health impacts and social impacts of eviction.   For instance, housing instability and income insecurity are shown to have lasting negative impacts on families, including on children’s performance in school and their ability to secure future employment….

 

  • …There’s also a well-documented connection between financialization and increased morbidity and mortality in long-term care facilities, and this has not only affected residents’ human rights to adequate housing, it has violated their fundamental human right to dignity, security of person, and even life….

 

  • …The key word in all of this is ‘harm’. And this is why Canada needs to treat financialization as a serous human rights issue and also a key component in addressing the housing crisis overall…

 

  • …In addressing financialization and its impact, the government must first take action – take, urgent, urgent action to stop the harm and protect human rights….First, the Federal Government can take action to protect the affordable, accessible housing supply that we already have.  The Federal government can create a fund for non-market public and Indigenous housing providers to buy, repair, and operate existing buildings….

 

  • …The government can also protect tenants’ rights and ensure that they have access to justice...

 

  • ….Government must establish a foundation for a human rights-based approach to housing. Effective and lasting human rights solutions require meaningful engagement with people and communities who are directly affected by the issue, and a genuine commitment to accountability….

 

  • … And tenants have been sounding the alarm about this trend [financialization of housing] before researcher identified it and coined the term ‘financialization’.    People with lived experience are the best experts on how it affects them and their communities and on the specific strategies their landlords employ as well as the necessary solutions.  So our first duty is to listen to and believe rights-holders.  We have the opportunity to recentre the voice of rights-holders in the conversation and to shine a light on their experiences and knowledge, and this process is a very important part of that….

 

  • …So as I mentioned earlier, there is a serious lack of publicly available data on the financialization of purpose-built rental that stops us from knowing its true scale. And a step the Federal Government can take in order to establish a foundation for a human rights-based approach to housing is to monitor and report on the extent of financialization, in particular its relationship to evictions, rent increases, habitability, and other human rights impacts. Also important here will be collecting and analysing disaggregated data to understand the distinct experiences of national housing strategy priority groups and other disadvantaged groups and communities. And this data collection and monitoring must be done collaboratively with the provinces and territories and with municipalities. The Federal Government can work with these other levels of government to gather comprehensive, transparent and publicly available data for several indicators of financialization…

 

  • …So this is why we must reorient our approach towards reinvesting in non-market housing.  Non-market housing also protects people from long-term health and social impacts of insecure housing…There is growing consensus that supply alone is not the answer.  It is part of the equation, but it must equally be followed with regulation to ensure that it is the right type of supply for everyone. The reason is simple:  The market’s prime directly is to increase profits and regulations help to ensure that they don’t violate human rights in doing so…”

[Emphasis added]

See also the following documents by the Federal Housing Advocate regarding the National Housing Council’s Review of purpose-built rental housing:

 

The importance of the right to adequate housing as per the National Housing Strategy Act, 2019 was emphasized in ADVOCATING FOR CHANGE:  THE HOUSING CRISIS IN CANADA – The Office of the Federal Housing Advocate’s 2022-2023 Annual Report to the Minister – July 5, 2023, at pages 16 and 49:

  • “…There is no health without adequate housing. There is no reconciliation without adequate housing. There is no safety for Indigenous women, girls, and Two-Spirit people without adequate housing. There is no mental health or addiction recovery without adequate housing. There is no gender equity, racial justice, or inclusion without adequate housing…. We need to take a new approach to providing adequate housing supply.  This means funding the development, repair, and acquisition of housing supply that is not-for-profit, permanently affordable, and provides community value in exchange for government investment….” [Emphasis added]  

See also:

 

 

  • Summon Landlord CEOs + DATA to House of Commons TODAY! LOWER RENT-GOUGED RENT & MORE! See the text of my prepared notes for my presentation before The City of Calgary Council on Monday November 20, 2023 to address the Budget.  Please check with my delivery to fit the 5-minute time limit.  I spoke remotely – Panel #10 – VIDEO starting at approximately 4:31:35.  “…NO means NO. I request you to immediately STOP THE HARM and ECONOMIC VIOLENCE in the multi-family residential rental sector in Calgary…” 

 

Financialization of housing is treating housing as a for-profit commodity and NOT first and foremost as a home – a basic HUMAN RIGHT.  It did NOT always exist – but was created in 1990s when the Federal Government stepped out of providing housing and let the “market” take over  - and the provinces stepped back rent protections.  Research before the Federal Housing Advocate reveals that Corporate investment in housing  is linked to unaffordable rents, evictions, and long-term care deaths.  Government policy created financialization of housing and government  policy can end it – TODAY.

 

See The Right to Housing 101 – National Right to Housing Network – 2020:   “…the government of Canada has committed internationally to ensuring adequate housing for all by 2030 under the Sustainable Development Goals…Adequate housing means more than four walls and a roof. Overall, the right to housing entitles everyone to live in peace, security, and dignity. The UN [United Nations] has also stated that a number of conditions must be met before housing can be considered adequate…. ”[including: Affordability; Accessibility;  Habitability; Security of Tenure; Location;  Availability of Services, Materials, Facilities & Infrastructure; and Cultural Adequacy.]  [Emphasis added]

 

Both Marie-Josée Houle, Federal Housing Advocate and the United Nations have recommended rental caps/tenant protections and to curtail financialization of housing:

 

Please write/call Federal/Provincial/Municipal politicians TODAY to summon the financialized landlords + DATA to the House of Commons to LOWER RENT-GOUGED RENT and to account for practices fostering the growing HOUSING EMERGENCY in Calgary, across Alberta and across Canada. Marie-Josée Houle, Federal Housing Advocate stated the following on May 9, 2023 during her testimony before the House of Commons HUMA Committee Review of financialization of housing, rent gouging, renovictions, and related issues:  

  • “I also urge the committee to call industry witnesses to account for their practices that undermine housing affordability, security of tenure and habitability, with data about their strategies and their profit margins.”

See my letter dated October 17, 2023 to ALL Levels of Government requesting that a HOUSING EMERGENCY  (The City of Calgary Regular Council Meeting November 7, 2023 MINUTES - DOCUMENT Distrib-Public Submissions 3-C-2023-1148 pages 21 to 29) – in my CHANGE.ORG petition UPDATE dated November 24, 2023 entitled Summon Landlord CEOs + DATA to House of Commons TODAY! LOWER RENT-GOUGED RENT & MORE!  

 

Also see further BELOW for some CONTACTS you may wish to CALL/WRITE to summon the financialized landlord CEOs + DATA to the House of Commons TODAY.

We can do this together!   Please spread the word!

 

Anne Landry

Calgary, Alberta

EMAIL:  Info@CalgariansForHousingRights.ca

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Some CONTACTS:

1.  Current Federal Members of Parliament - https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/search

The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada House of Commons  Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6  TEL:  613-992-4211  EMAIL:  Justin.Trudeau@parl.gc.ca

2.  Members of the House of Commons HUMA Committee - HUMA - Members - House of Commons of Canada (ourcommons.ca).  See the House of Commons HUMA Committee Review of financialization, rent-gouging, renovictions and related issues – with 41 BRIEFS, Written transcripts (at “Evidence” TAB on the Meeting days), and FINAL REPORT that was provided to the House of Commons on October 26, 2023. 

3.  Current Members of the Alberta Legislative Assembly - https://www.assembly.ab.ca/members/members-of-the-legislative-assembly

Honorable Danielle Smith, Premier of Alberta 

Members of the Executive Council Executive Branch – 307 Legislature Building   10800 – 97 Avenue Edmonton, AB  T5K 2B6     TEL: 780-427-2251   EMAIL:  Premier@gov.ab.ca 

4.  Mayor Jyoti Gondek of The City of Calgary

Office of the Mayor, Calgary Municipal Building 800 Macleod Trail S.E. P.O. Box 2100, Station M, #8069 Calgary, AB Canada T2P 2M5  EMAIL: TheMayor@Calgary.ca

The City of Calgary Council Municipal Building 800 Macleod Trail S.E. Calgary, Alberta P.O. Box 2100, Station M Calgary, AB Canada T2P 2M5   

EMAIL addresses:

  • Ward 1 - Councillor Sonya Sharp - EMAIL:  Sonya.Sharp@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 2 - Councillor Jennifer Wyness - EMAIL: Jennifer.Wyness@Calgary.ca   
  • Ward 3 - Councillor Jasmine Mian  - EMAIL:  Jasmine.Mian@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 4 - Councillor Sean Chu - EMAIL:  Sean.Chu@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 5 - Councillor Raj Dhaliwal - EMAIL:  Raj.Dhaliwal@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 6 - Councillor Richard Pootmans - EMAIL:  Richard.Pootmans@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 7 - Councillor Terry Wong - EMAIL:  Terry.Wong@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 8 - Councillor Courtney Walcott - EMAIL:  Courtney.Walcott@Calgary.ca  
  • Ward 9 - Councillor Gian-Carlo Carra - EMAIL:  Gian-Carlo.Carra@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 10 - Councillor Andre Chabot  - EMAIL:  Andre.Chabot@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 11 - Councillor Kourtney Penner - EMAIL:  Kourtney.Penner@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 12 – Councillor Evan Spencer - EMAIL:  Evan.Spencer@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 13 – Councillor Dan Mclean - EMAIL:  Dan.Mclean@Calgary.ca
  • Ward 14 – Councillor Peter Demong - EMAIL:  Peter.Demong@Calgary.ca
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