Eviction notices go out to 170 Nunavik Housing Bureau tenants
Director general says only a fraction will eventually be evicted
Quebec’s housing tribunal, headquartered in Montreal’s Olympic Village, is the jurisdiction for rental housing and claims related to leases. The tribunal has granted permission for Nunavik Housing Bureau to serve 170 eviction notices across the region. (Photo by Cedric Gallant, special to Nunatsiaq News)
Nunavik Housing Bureau has given out 170 eviction notices but they will only be enforced if the bureau has exhausted all other options, says director general Lupin Daignault.
The eviction notices were granted to the housing bureau by the province’s administrative tribunal for housing between April and July this year, according to Quebec’s judicial information society.
Nunavik Housing Bureau manages 4,004 housing units, which is 98 per cent of housing in the region. This means about four per cent of Nunavik’s homes have eviction notices.
Daignault said in a French interview that historically, only a small fraction of tenants end up getting evicted.
In 2022, he said, the bureau had a list of 273 eviction notices and nine tenants were evicted. In 2023, it was 10, and in 2024 it was seven.
“We try to evict the least people as possible,” he said.
A judgment given by Quebec’s housing tribunal can be enforced over a period of 10 years, but usually most tenants solve their issues with the housing bureau as soon as they are contacted.
“We do everything we can to get in touch with the tenant — FM radio, Facebook, calls, anything,” Daignault said, calling the process a “huge operation.”
“The amount of people we need to talk to, send letters to, the work is heavy.”
When bureau representatives get in touch, they start working with the tenant by agreeing on a minimal reimbursement plan over a period of time.
“And I press the word minimal,” Daignault said.
The bureau does not enforce eviction notices on elders or families with young children.
“We focus on those who have abandoned their housing,” Daignault said. “Not only can’t we contact them, but they are not even there anymore.”
This happens often, he said.
If the bureau is not able to get in touch with the tenant, a bailiff comes to Nunavik on the housing bureau’s dime. Most evictions are done early in fall.
Some cases published by the provincial housing tribunal show tenants owing tens of thousands of dollars to Nunavik Housing Bureau, a debt amassed by not paying rent for years at a time.
Daignault said it is never too late for people to bring their notice of assessments from years prior, because the housing bureau will retroactively subtract the amount from the unpaid rent.
“Once we contact the tenants, and they bring their documents, their debts drop drastically,” he said.
He added that his bureau loses around 20 per cent of its total rent revenue each year.
“A lot of people in Nunavik think we make money; we are not making money,” Daignault said.
Out of its $305 million yearly budget, rent revenues only account for approximately $20 million.
“Even if we were able to get back the missing 20 per cent, [the housing bureau] operates at a loss,” he said.
The ”TOKEN ” 170 , sure , the number should be higher. Thursday today, Bingo , navada, beer or wine , and miss work tomorrow due to a hangover. life in nunavik
There is only a few of small towns in Nunavik with alcohol stores available: Kuujjuaq, Puvirnituq and Kuujjuaraapik. The pattern in Kuujjuaq is bingo every week with navada tickets, beer and wine.
The rest of the communities in Nunavik don’t have weekly gambling games available, most likely once a month.
If the tenants would submit their yearly net salary it would help to subsidize their rent. KMHB pay only one dollar per land to the landholding of the region. Example :140 social houses in a town then KMHB pays $140 to landholding. The rent is very high for most units that are small, needs renovations, poor plumbing and maintenance services. If the tenants are not responding and are overdue with payments, perhaps they are in the hospital away from the town or sadly in prison. Due to unforeseen circumstances a tenant is unable to pay up, but there is also others applying to rent a unit for many years and full of potential to keep up with payments. Each housing manager should be checked regularly, visit each town and make sure that they not only pick their favourite people to rent, think of the small town mind that demonstrates favouritism (housing staff).
The new housing units being built are getting smaller and the architecture is not as stable. Each house sitting on small sedimental rocks instead of a strong bedrock. Qairtumiigialii iklujuat atuni siuratuinnaungittumi. The construction crew sets up anywhere without checking with a geologist research references. The geologist has a map of each town about the potential places to build avoiding natural disasters such as mudslides.
Main factors of social housing units not seen as relevant.
-not all social housing are subsidized
-increasing rent for all tenants even for the retired elderly tenants
-poor plumbing services and too many furnace problems (high levels of toxic chemicals).
-hiring poor management and staff who only prioritize their favourite people (small town life).
-KMHB has no interest on geological research to avoid natural disasters
It’s not willy-nilly build-a-house wherever they want. In the end, the municipality approves the locations (lots) of planned construction a year before. The said lots are researched by KRG engineers many years well in advance (community master plan). 🤷
This is fantastic for Nunavik. A good start at least.
I’d like to see Nunavut Housing take some action and do something about all the illegal subletting in Iqaluit. One person gets housing through ACHF then sublets the space to family and friends, and now locals can’t get work in town.
The casual binder has always been one-sided in favour of non-Inuit. But now it’s crazy.
Maybe Nunavut Housing can learn from this.
Tenants in Nunavut owe millions of dollars in rent.
Tenants owe from ten thousand to eighty five grand. 😱
And that’s just rent.
Imagine the power bills owed?
Nunavut residents demand more houses but… how about pay rent?
Forever mortgage depending on your yearly income 🤑 For the same type of residence, occupancies are $150 monthly or $1000 monthly🏠
Nunavik has thousands for soda pops. Cigarettes are also proriority money allocations. Mikis and weeds also get business first, Then rent and food on need only basis. Just saying.
One thing i know, theres no sympathy towards many stories of this in Nunavik. When it gets in the news, whats the goal of such a story? If its to notify the public, then thats about it. Peopke are not sympathetic towards these stories anymore. The rental population make their own negligence. And then the big culprit: the waste of money from every aspect . Canadian and Quebec in the main stream society got their life doing good things with love and family, caring about Nunavik corrupt life is not on the radar.