The city of Montreal held a council meeting on the development of the Responsible Landlord Certification and rent registry project. With the certification and registry, the city of Montreal aims to hold landlords accountable and render housing more affordable and safe.

In Montreal's last municipal election, housing was a top concern for 60% of voters 35 and under. But has the city's municipal party Projet Montreal delivered better support for tenants since the party's reelection last fall?

In their campaign, they promised a landlord registry, which would require landlord owning property housing units of 8 or more to register their spaces online in a public record. Landlords will have to disclose rent prices, vacancy, proof of inspections, if the building is up to code, if it’s free of vermin, and if they have taken care of any essential repairs or repairs that need to be completed.

Property owners who do not register may face fines from $250 to $650 for the first offence. The second offence can be as high as $2,500.

The general goals of this program are to hold landlords responsible for their residential rental properties, reduce the number of substandard and poorly maintained housing, improve the conditions of housing while preserving affordability and contribute to greater transparency from landlords.

But some issues arise, as many apartments that are 7 units or less go under the radar, as landlords do not have to list their details in the rent registry. Properties with 8 units or more account for approximately 35% of the city’s rental market, meaning 65% of properties are not listed on the landlord registry.

Tune into the council to hear what Montreal residents have to say to the council about the rent registry.