Some people in Calgary have experienced what they have been calling “Economic Evictions“.
Economic Evictions happen when rent increases by a dramatic amount, the highest I have read is 400%! Quite often these increases are intended to get rid of tennants to make way for condo conversions or the increasing affluence of workers in Calgary. For a regular condo conversion the renter currently needs to be given 6-months notice, but there is only a 3-month notice currently required for rent increases.
Read more at: Calgary Herald: Renters priced out of homes – 400% hikes leave tenants facing cold
The Alberta Government is finally looking at protecting tenants, but in a limited way. They have rejected the idea of rent controls, saying that it will limit new apartment developments, even though they haven’t been happening in almost a decade anyways.
What the Alberta Government has proposed is that landlords can only increase the rent once per year, instead of the two times they are currently allowed to do. The government states that “I don’t believe that it’s going to jack up the price, but it gives some stability for the renter to know that he does have stability for an extended period of time.”. I personally think that they are being over optimistic considering that one increase of 400% would still be a painful increase to anyone.
Read more at: CBC: Alberta moves to protect tenants, won’t curb rents
As of April, the average price to rent a one-bedroom apartment in Calgary was $675.