Time for Action - TELL YOUR FRIENDS!

In light of the most recent posts by one 'anonymous landlord', it is increasingly apparent and that we need to take action.

Action against this blatant display of discrimination. Action against people that think they are invincible to any type of accountability to the city, the province, the nation.

People (homeowners) with attitudes like these MUST AND WILL BE STOPPED, and the public (local, nationwide and globally) WILL be made aware of this situation. I am willing to bet that we are not the only city in Canada with these types of problems.

I am carefully considering all posted comments and suggestions (thank you so much Tokeman). Within the next week I will have made calls, sent emails and searched online to find the best way to proceed.

If you have ANY suggestions, please send them to me or post. No rock will be left unturned.

In the meantime, I will post a couple more surveys to gather more information. PLEASE ASK ALL YOUR ONLINE FRIENDS TO TAKE PART. The more information we gather, the better.

Thank you all for reading and taking part.

And Tokeman... no thunder stealing here. We're in this together. Let's do this!

Want to be featured?

Have something to say that doesn't fit with the topics I've posted? I'd be happy to receive your emails and would love to post them for discussion.

getonthesoapbox@gmail.com

Next Steps?

I'm so impressed with everyone's comments and suggestions.

I propose to everyone,

WHAT DO WE DO NOW?


I am willing to do anything it takes to instigate change and advocate for affordable housing in Victoria. Something has to be done.

Write letters? To who.

Bang on doors? Where.

Organize a protest? Protesting what.

I won't give up, and I hope any of you who are passionate about this won't either.

Please post any info or suggestions you may have.

Homeless, shmomeless.

A lot of working class poverty would be solved if HALF the effort, funding and resources that are spent on housing the homeless in Victoria was put into building affordable rental housing for hard-working, responsible people. And I'm not talking crappy CRD or BC Housing projects. Not that they're all crappy.. but seriously? No privacy, intrusive rules and regulations, a bazillion kids screaming constantly out your windows, tenants with drug addiction issues, etc. Rather, homes for families or couples that would be private and house-like. Gee, you mean like actual houses? Why not. With yards and gardens. Nobody upstairs, downstairs, to your left or to your right or in your damn face every second.

I would feel a hell of a lot better reading a headline like, '400 Newly Built Houses to Rent Available Now in Victoria' instead of this one.

Overwhelming numbers of homeless people in downtown Victoria need housing? Well let's bend over backwards to find them a cozy place to live. Overwhelming number of working stiffs that can't afford to buy groceries or pay hydro or drive their car or OR OR this month because the rent they are paying takes more than half their income? Who cares!

Oh. And there are plans to house another 500 street people within the next year.

Perhaps if I were a drug addicted, pregnant, homeless youth with a dog from Toronto sleeping in front of the Bay Centre I could get a really great place to live in this city.

Would there even be anywhere for rental houses to be built in Victoria? Maybe a farm that isn't staying afloat could be bought and developed? Helps them, helps us.

What would you rather see? A freaking corn-maze or pumpkin festival or houses being built to help hundreds of people?

What's going on out there in renting land?

I can think of a few reasons why it would be great to buy a house. I can think of a dozen more why being a renter makes more sense for me. Being a homeowner would actually suck. And I'm not just saying that because there's a better chance of swine-flu pigs flying than of me ever having enough cash for a downpayment.

I exchange some (nay.. almost all *grr*) of my hard-earned money for a place to live. In a way this buys me peace of mind. Roof leaks? Not my problem. All your pipes bursting at once and there's a huge waterfall in the basement? That's nice. The most I have to do as a renter is pick up the phone. Not to mention I don't have to pay insurance, property taxes, strata fees or be locked into a near lifetime contract with the bank that actually owns my house. If I need a bigger, smaller or more centrally located place to live as a renter, I can move. I am not alone. There are people of every age and of all walks of life who are renters by choice.

Are you a renter by choice? A renter with plans to buy a house? A financial advisor or realtor that can shed some light on the situation? Tell me I'm out to lunch? What's going on out there in renting land?

Grants for secondary suites. A good start for affordable housing?

The City of Victoria is hosting an open house this Saturday for homeowners who are interested in applying for a grant to install a secondary suite. Once complete, the suite must be available for rental for a period of five years. Albeit, the homeowner may charge what they wish for rent, but the fact that this may open up more rentals in the city could potentially cause some competition for lowering the pricing.

Or, is this just going to be a 'try to get rich by squeezing a crowded suite into your house to make a buck' scheme for homeowners?

Not to mention, said homeowners with these suites for rent will probably be first time landlords. Forget pets or kids or anything they else they might think is snotty, noisy and disgusting (including your Friday night poker guests or Uncle John visiting from Toronto). Pave the way to unnecessary arbitration hearings.

Public Information Session at City Hall

Regulate what landlords can charge for rent?

Here's an email asking the same question that drives me bananas (yes. bananas):

I feel as strongly about this as you. I am a single mom paying over $1200 because I don't want my child to live in a tiny dump. I don't know how I can ever get ahead enough to buy my own place. I also have a big dog, so you've gotta come up with over a thousand bucks for your deposit right away, it's crazy! Real estate prices are coming down, and rental prices aren't, what sense does that make??

It almost IS like the price of gas. Once the consumers have been forced to pay over a dollar for a liter of fuel, what incentive is there for the oil companies to lower the price? Even after the price for barrels of oil have gone down. They already know we'll pay what we've been forced to. I can't imagine a landlord saying to his/her tenant,

'Well, looks like the value of my home has decreased by 8% over the last couple years. How 'bout I give you a break and reduce your rent by $100/month? Oh, and here's a blank cheque for you to go out and get yourself something nice for the yard'.

No matter how we slice it, our price for a piece of the rental pie will stay where it is now, probably get worse,

UNLESS THE PRICE OF RENTAL HOUSING IS REGULATED BY THE PROVINCE OR CITY.

Not sure how this can or will happen, but it seriously must. Seriously.

I pose this question to the one reader of my online rantings (hi mom!):

As a renter in the city of Victoria, are you willing to support and fight for a by-law that would regulate what a landlord could charge for rent?

If so, why? If not, why? Let's get this showboat on the road. Can we do this? Really. Can we?

Landlords openly gouging renters?

Your dead on, landlords openly gouging renters. Interesting that all suites are just newly renovated? No pets, can't even smoke outside? The Landlord likes us as tenants and really doesn't want to lose us as renters as it costs money to list and rent and show his place. Would like to see a renters coalition set up in Victoria. I believe these property owners will suffer in the near future as vacancy is not as bad as the media and realestate jerks say it is.
Thank you for the post

Thank you for the email! I agree. The vacancy rate cannot be as bad as it is reported to be. Perhaps the people telling us the vacancy rate is less than 0.5% are the same people who are part of the secret 'fuel prices stay where they are even when a barrel of gas costs less than a barrel of monkeys' society. And, btw.. a barrel of monkeys is dirt cheap. Don't ask how I know this.

yea I am pretty chocked and stressed about the price of places too, i just had to give my dog up and I have 2 cats wich I cant give up after having to give up my dog, I work full time and I cant afford 800 for a 1 bedroom or 750 for a bachlor.... im couch surfing right now, and im running out of sources.... this is total BS and something should be done... I cant live in my car with 2 cats.....

No kidding you're chocked. (Must be a cross between choked and shocked. Works for me.) Landlords make it very difficult to own pets in this city. Besides most pet owners being the most responsible, caring people out there, we are usually very good tenants and like to stay in places awhile. Kinda like people with little kids, but no screaming and food everywhere. Well, maybe food everywhere. Especially if you are feeding a barrel of monkeys.

A societal problem and it's reached almost epidemic proportions

Here is the first email that I am choosing to post from dozens of responses I've had. More to come.

Any possible identifiable information has been removed. As a result, slight editing may have been necessary.

We LOVE this ad of yours...you are so very correct. We are two hard working mature adults (with good jobs) with a child and two dogs - talk about almost impossible to find somewhere to live in this city. We ended up in an apt with no balcony, which kind of feels like a cave and we're the mushrooms. It's only redeeming feature is that it's reasonable in rent. However, we have nowhere to garden, to BBQ, to work on vehicles etc. Also, for the past year we've had to leave the larger dog with friends 'cause we can't afford to get kicked out of the apt we're in. That means that we've had to leave our dog behind for almost a year - we've been looking since we moved here in Oct now to find something reasonable for our family and we've come to the conclusion that it will have to be East Sooke or Duncan for affordability and life style choice.
I do not believe that landlords need to be as greedy and self-serving as they have become - this is a societal problem and it's reached almost epidemic proportions - do they really think that in this economic climate that the people they want to rent to can afford what they want to charge - it's become insane. Anyway, those are my thoughts on the matter. We are like you - we are good, responsible tenants who just want a nice place for our family and there's no way at present we can buy in this over-inflated market.

Finding a house to rent in Victoria is UNREAL

Me: Looking for a nice, affordable 2 or 3 bedroom house to rent in the Victoria area.

Them: Renting 1 bedroom suites in houses for more money per month than it would cost to fly to Mexico. Well, maybe not as long as the dreaded...... (echoey James Earl Jonesish delivery) swine flu is active. Got shared laundry? Oh boy, do they! Gee. A separate entrance even? What a luxury.

Me: Annoyed to the point that I can't stand it any more. Simple, short ad created and posted in Used Victoria's 'Houses for Rent' section displaying my annoyance in a public fashion (see 'What started this?').

Renters: Overwhelmingly respond to the ad by sending emails containing their experiences of being treated unfairly and agreeing that it is out of control. (Posts containing excerpts from these emails to come... Don't worry about being identified. I'm all about the privacy.)

A couple of 'them': A few brave lords o' the land felt also felt compelled to drop me a line:

"please do not be rallying the troops against us ..or we will more than likely quit and then where would all the people be?"

You have got to be kidding. Where would all the people be? I have no words other than to let you know you smell of fear and probably Old Spice. Well, maybe fear, Old Spice and a bag of money.

Check back often, post your thoughts and feelings, argue with me or agree with me. Let me hear what you have to say.

They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.
- Andy Warhol