{"id":420210,"date":"2026-01-19T23:16:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T23:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/420210\/"},"modified":"2026-01-19T23:16:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T23:16:10","slug":"quebec-housing-tribunal-recommends-3-1-rent-increase-for-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/420210\/","title":{"rendered":"Quebec housing tribunal recommends 3.1% rent increase for 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Quebec\u2019s housing tribunal has released its rent-setting guidelines for 2026.<\/p>\n

Rents in Quebec should go up by 3.1 per cent this year, closely matching inflation in the province, the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL) is suggesting.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s for leases beginning between April 2, 2026, and April 1, 2027, and for which notice was given on or after Jan. 1, 2026.<\/p>\n

Tenant groups say the increases are among the highest Quebec has seen in nearly two decades. They warn the new rates come at a time when many Montrealers are already struggling to keep up with soaring housing costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat tenants needed this year was a reprieve, as well as steps put in place to curb abusive rent hikes in the years to come,\u201d said Amy Darwish, the coordinator of Parc-Extension Action Committee (CAPE).<\/p>\n

Housing advocates say the new rent formula is unprecedented, allowing a five per cent increase for renovations, and expanding what counts as renovations to include things like painting or adding an electrical outlet.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s actually insane\u201d said Montrealer Shaminie Suntharam. \u201cI mean, as a Gen Z myself, especially, it\u2019s hard coming out of living with parents and then trying to make a life for yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLiving in Montreal now is becoming a project in itself,\u201d sad Jessica Regias. \u201cLike you have to really commit to living in Montreal to subsists in it. \u2026 I really think that they should listen a little bit more to the people because sooner than later, they\u2019re going to lose almost everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rent, it takes a big part of my pay,\u201d added Anthony Coronhotte.<\/p>\n

\"\"For rent sign in front of an apartment building in Parc-Extension, Montreal on Jan. 19, 2026. (Martin Daigle, CityNews) <\/p>\n

This year\u2019s recommended rent increase, calculated for the first time using a new formula, is lower than last year\u2019s recommendation by the TAL for landlords to increase rents by an average of 5.9 per cent<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe good news is that inflation has come down, and so finally that means that it\u2019s not as bad as last year when it was up at 5.9 per cent,\u201d said Steve Baird, the community organizer at the Coalition of Housing Committees and Tenants Associations of Quebec (RCLALQ). \u201cThe bad news is that the government changed its calculation method, and now it\u2019s based on the inflation of the last three years.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Quebec Landlords\u2019 Association, however, argues the rent setting isn\u2019t enough. The group believes calculating increases will now be simpler, based on consumer index changes, and it hopes it makes negotiations with tenants easier.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s still not enough if we look at the expenses for landlords,\u201d said Martin Messier, the group\u2019s president.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it was done to reach not some form of consensus, because there isn\u2019t one, but to reach a point where it\u2019s not so bad for anyone. But at some point, we\u2019re going to need to be able to address the situation of older buildings in need of repair.\u201d<\/p>\n

Housing advocates argue landlords already make enough money to cover repairs and want to remind tenants of their rights.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany landlords come door to door and will tell them things along the lines of \u2018either you accept this rent increase or you leave,\u2019\u201d said Darwish. \u201cThat\u2019s false. You\u2019ve always had the right to refuse a rent increase and remain in your apartment.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Quebec\u2019s housing tribunal has released its rent-setting guidelines for 2026. Rents in Quebec should go up by 3.1…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":420211,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[49,48,295,66],"class_list":{"0":"post-420210","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-environment","11":"tag-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420210","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=420210"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420210\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/420211"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=420210"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=420210"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=420210"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}