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JOHN WOODS \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
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Avery Helm and Quincy Houdayer with dog Honey outside their Furby Street apartment. After repeatedly asking for repairs, they went to the Residential Tenancies Branch.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
RTB data obtained by the Free Press also shows 13 orders involving the three-building complex at 193-197 Furby St. in 2026 alone. All but one favoured the tenant, while the remaining order ruled in favour of both the tenant and landlord on different items.<\/p>\n
One order, dated May 6, noted the landlord had failed to complete repairs required under a previous order. The RTB did not provide details about the specific repairs or disputes involved in the orders.<\/p>\n
The latest problem left Houdayer, Helm and other tenants at the complex without hot water for about a week in late September.<\/p>\n
Hot water was restored Sept. 30, but only after what residents described as a chaotic repair effort that included an attempt to install used tanks that leaked once hooked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of the experiences we\u2019ve had with them can be boiled down to, like, they either are very dismissive about it, they act like it\u2019s not their problem\u2026 or they will just fully, blatantly ignore you.\u201d<\/p>\n
One longtime tenant, who requested anonymity because she fears repercussions from management, said a plumber determined the existing hot-water tanks needed to be replaced.<\/p>\n
She said work stopped before the weekend because Clearwater would not pay additional weekend labour costs, leaving tenants without hot water for several more days.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of the hot water tanks were sitting in the basement, all the pipes and everything, everything that needed to be done was all there,\u201d she said. \u201cThey just refused to pay for the weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
When work resumed, replacement tanks brought into the building had large orange Xs painted on them. Tenants were told the markings indicated scratches or dents and the tanks were otherwise in working order.<\/p>\n
Video reviewed by the Free Press shows water pouring from one of the tanks after it was hooked up, including near electrical connections.<\/p>\n
Text messages reviewed by the Free Press show Rahim Mirza, a Winnipeg realtor who residents say has become one of their primary contacts for Clearwater over the past six months, responding by saying the repair was close to $10,000, and that tenants \u201cneed to take it easy a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mirza\u2019s involvement comes as he faces an unrelated Manitoba Securities Commission proceeding that includes allegations he provided third-party property-management services despite not being registered to do so. The allegations have not been proven.<\/p>\n
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He was previously found by the commission to have committed professional misconduct and conduct unbecoming a registrant in an unrelated real-estate matter and had his registration suspended for 30 days.<\/p>\n
Mirza agreed to speak only off the record when contacted by the Free Press. He said he would provide a formal statement from Clearwater after talking to several people, but none was received. There was no response to multiple attempts for further comment. Attempts to contact the company separately were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n
For Houdayer and Helm, the problems began before they had even moved into the complex in November 2023.<\/p>\n
Records show holes and exposed plumbing remained in their bathroom despite assurances repairs would be completed by their move-in date. Within weeks, water was leaking through the ceiling and damaging walls in both the bathroom and adjoining bedroom.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had to explain that (water) was coming out of the light fixture in the ceiling and they said, \u2018We\u2019ll be there in half an hour.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The couple repeatedly contacted Clearwater before turning to the RTB. After months of correspondence and an RTB inspection, their rent was redirected to the branch in March 2024. They said Clearwater completed more substantial repairs later that month.<\/p>\n
But the plumbing problems returned.<\/p>\n
The correspondence documents that water was leaking through a bathroom light fixture in October 2024. In March 2025, water poured through the bathroom ceiling for more than two hours before the couple called 311 and the city\u2019s water service was shut off.<\/p>\n
Repairs were completed the following month, only for the bathroom to flood again days later.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had to explain that it was coming out of the light fixture in the ceiling and they said, \u2018We\u2019ll be there in half an hour,\u2019\u201d Helm said of another call to 311.<\/p>\n
By August 2025, the couple reported water behind a bathroom wall, bubbling paint and what they described as mould and small mushrooms growing near an area repeatedly affected by moisture.<\/p>\n
The records show maintenance concerns continued into 2026, including recurring hot-water outages and complaints involving heating, basement conditions, building security and laundry facilities.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t JOHN WOODS \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n The former basement storage area in Quincy Houdayer and Avery Helm\u2019s Furby St. apartment block, which was boarded up and locked instead of cleaned out.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Tenant Aga Wyskwar, who moved into the complex in 2024, described similar difficulty getting responses from management.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing gets answered. I get absolutely zero. Nothing, no answer,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s like I don\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n Wyskwar has previously taken Clearwater to the RTB over rent she says she was charged above the amount established for her former basement apartment and said she recovered money she had overpaid after the branch became involved.<\/p>\n She is now dealing with a repair order dating to August. Wyskwar said the RTB told her Clearwater claimed she had been difficult to reach and was refusing access for repairs.<\/p>\n Wyskwar disputes those claims and has provided the RTB with evidence she says shows she has neither denied access nor been unresponsive. She also contacted Clearwater seeking an explanation but said she received no response.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing gets answered. I get absolutely zero. Nothing, no answer\u2026 It\u2019s like I don\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n In a statement to the Free Press, the RTB said it \u201cencourages tenants to first discuss repair concerns with their landlord.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf concerns remain unresolved, tenants may submit a Tenant\u2019s Request for Repairs to the RTB,\u201d the statement said. \u201cThe Branch will review the request, gather information from the parties, and determine whether further action is required. Where appropriate, the RTB may issue a Repair Order requiring work to be completed within a specified time frame. The RTB monitors compliance with its orders and has additional enforcement tools available where necessary. Each matter is assessed on its own facts and circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n The Free Press also spoke with Mintu Sandhu, Manitoba\u2019s Minister of Public Service Delivery, who is also responsible for the RTB.<\/p>\n \u201cI am listening to renters, and that\u2019s my focus, that\u2019s my highest priority,\u201d Sandhu said. \u201cThis is from the premier as well, and this is also my priority to my department, to make sure there\u2019s a solution.<\/p>\n Other concerns documented by tenants on Furby include periods without heat, overflowing garbage, missing recycling bins, exterior lighting and the condition of common areas.<\/p>\n Houdayer and Helm said a basement storage area where residents had previously found discarded needles, garbage and an unconscious person was boarded shut after complaints rather than cleaned out. An RTB case on that has been closed as tenants haven\u2019t been able to check the state of it since it was boarded and locked up.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t MIKE DEAL \/ FREE PRESS FILES<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Manitoba\u2019s Minister of Public Service Delivery, Mintu Sandhu, who is also responsible for the RTB. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n They also said their apartment became so cold during a heating outage last winter that they resorted to running their oven for warmth while waiting several days for the problem to be addressed.<\/p>\n The mounting issues at the apartment complex highlight growing frustrations for renters, who say the RTB is giving the upper hand to landlords and leaving tenants \u2014 literally \u2014 in the cold.<\/p>\n Melissa Kuhn thought she had already made the responsible choice.<\/p>\n Nearly five years ago, she and her husband left a newer two-bedroom apartment and moved into a smaller, older one-bedroom unit at 277 Wellington Cres. after facing a rent increase they felt they could no longer afford.<\/p>\n \u201cI was tired of living paycheque to paycheque, and I needed to change that,\u201d the 35-year-old said. \u201cSo one of the biggest ways I could do that was to move into a smaller, cheaper rental unit.\u201d<\/p>\n Now, Kuhn is wondering how much smaller she can go.<\/p>\n Tenants at the Rivard Group-managed building received notices Sept. 30 seeking above-guideline rent increases of roughly 10 to 12 per cent, depending on unit size. For Kuhn, the proposed increase amounts to another $172 a month, pushing her rent from about $1,600 to nearly $1,800.<\/p>\n The Free Press has reached out to Rivard for comment.<\/p>\n That has Kuhn once again looking at what she can give up to get her housing costs down \u2014 a balcony, a second bathroom or other amenities she increasingly considers luxuries.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are in business, yes, but it\u2019s not just a business. You are in the business of housing people.\u201d<\/p>\n But looking at cheaper apartments has also left her confronting another question: if she needs to move into a less-expensive unit to make the numbers work, what happened to the person who could afford to live there before her?<\/p>\n \u201cWho was here before? Who was priced out of this unit?\u201d Kuhn said. \u201cWhere did they go? Because they have to go somewhere for me to get into this.\u201d<\/p>\n It is a question she increasingly asks herself.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m 35 years old. I\u2019ve been to university. I work for the government, and I have been priced out of buying a home,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Kuhn said she and other tenants have collectively objected to the proposed increase through the RTB and are seeking more information about the costs Rivard is asking tenants to absorb.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t get me wrong. I totally understand that everything costs more than what it used to,\u201d she said. \u201cYou are in business, yes, but it\u2019s not just a business. You are in the business of housing people.\u201d<\/p>\n Above-guideline rent increases <\/p>\n LANDLORDS can apply to Manitoba\u2019s Residential Tenancies Branch for rent increases exceeding the annual guideline, typically to cover major capital improvements, increased property taxes or higher operating costs.<\/p>\n Application process: Landlords must submit an application to the RTB with supporting financial documentation and provide written notice to tenants. \u2014 Scott Billeck<\/p>\n Last month, the Free Press reported<\/a> tenants at eight Winnipeg apartment buildings owned by Alberta-based Wingspan Properties were fighting proposed increases ranging from 54 to 125 per cent. Manitoba\u2019s annual rent increase guideline is 1.8 per cent for 2026 and will rise to three per cent in 2027.<\/p>\n Dozens of Wingspan tenants protested outside Premier Wab Kinew\u2019s constituency office, arguing they should be able to challenge the increases before being required to pay them. Some tenants have already moved because they feared they could not afford the higher rents, while others face increases scheduled to take effect as early as Nov. 1.<\/p>\n The tenants argue the increases do not reflect capital expenditures or higher operating costs that would justify such large hikes. Landlords can apply to the RTB for increases above the annual guideline based such factors.<\/p>\n \u201cThe injustice to me is that they haven\u2019t been given the opportunity to fight this, challenge it, and stay in their homes,\u201d said Aidan Wilson, a tenant at 152-154 Maryland St. who is challenging his own increase.<\/p>\n Sandhu said he\u2019s now met with the West Broadway Tenant Committee twice since their complaints surfaced.<\/p>\n The committee wasn\u2019t left with any firm commitments.<\/p>\n \u201cSeeing as the rent increases in at least three of the buildings are slated to take effect Nov. 1, no news is very bad news, indeed,\u201d said Maggie A. Clark, an organizer with the committee.<\/p>\n Or as Wilson puts it: \u201cIt gives me great concern that every day we hear nothing is another day closer to the rent going up on this building.\u201d<\/p>\n Kinew, who has been questioned multiple times by Free Press reporters on the concerns of tenants, has said broader protections are coming once Bill 13 passes in the Manitoba legislature. The legislation \u2014 The Residential Tenancies Amendment Act \u2014 proposes the largest expansion of renter protections and rent-control regulations in decades and the legislation aims to curb high rent increases and increase accountability for landlords.<\/p>\n Kinew has said the opposition Progressive Conservatives are blocking the bill, but both the Tories and tenants say regulatory changes, including freezing rent increases, don\u2019t require legislation changes.<\/p>\n Despite the problems on Furby, Houdayer and Helm said they don\u2019t want to leave.<\/p>\n They love their apartment, neighbours and West Broadway and resent the idea that tenants should have to abandon their homes because of problems they believe their landlord is responsible for addressing.<\/p>\n \u201cWe shouldn\u2019t have to move because our landlord\u2019s bad,\u201d one said. \u201cOur landlord should simply fulfil the obligations that they\u2019re legally supposed to.\u201d<\/p>\n Wyskwar expressed a similar attachment to the century-old building and its community, but said constantly fighting over repairs is taking its toll.<\/p>\n \u201cI honestly, I don\u2019t know how much longer I can stick around,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s really taking a toll on every single person.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe shouldn\u2019t have to move because our landlord\u2019s bad\u2026 Our landlord should simply fulfil the obligations that they\u2019re legally supposed to.\u201d<\/p>\n For Houdayer and Helm, the experience has also exposed what they see as weaknesses in the system meant to protect renters. They said navigating the RTB process requires tenants to research their rights, repeatedly contact the branch and sometimes spend months pursuing basic repairs.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very taxing on a resident to have to go through all this work to just try and get the baseline of these repairs done,\u201d Helm said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt would be great to see an RTB that has a bit more teeth to deal with these landlords\u2026 because some tenants don\u2019t have the time to do that\u2026 and are getting taken advantage of.\u201d<\/p>\n If there\u2019s sliver of macabre-laced solace to be had, it\u2019s that tenants are not alone.<\/p>\n \u201cThe problem is that as long as these regulations remain in place this will keep happening in buildings across the city,\u201d adds Yutaka Dirks, senior policy and outreach adviser with the Canadian Centre for Housing Rights. \u201cIt\u2019s not a rare occurrence, unfortunately. Tens of thousands of units have received these kind of increases every few years.\u201d<\/p>\n scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Scott Billeck Scott Billeck is a general assignment reporter for the Free Press. A Creative Communications graduate from Red River College, Scott has more than a decade\u2019s worth of experience covering hockey, football and global pandemics. He joined the Free Press in 2024.\u00a0 Read more about Scott<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Scott produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n
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\nTenant rights: Tenants can submit written objections to the RTB before a decision is made.
\nAnnual rent guidelines: Manitoba\u2019s rent increase guideline is 1.8 per cent for 2026, rising to three per cent in 2027.
\nExemptions: Certain properties are exempt from rent increase guidelines, including newer buildings within their exemption period, units above the prescribed high-rent threshold (more than $1,670 per month, increasing to $2,000 per month on Jan. 1, 2027), social housing and life leases.
\nNotice requirements: Landlords must provide at least three months\u2019 written notice before a rent increase takes effect.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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