Rent increase at Yellowknife transitional housing complex surprises tenants | CBC News

Residents at Lynn’s Place, an affordable women’s housing complex in Yellowknife, are raising the alarm about a rent increase. 

Starting next February, a bachelor unit is going from $900 to $1,135; a two-bedroom apartment from $1,580 to $1,660; and three-bedroom apartments from $1,750 to $1,930, per month. 

One resident at Lynn’s Place told CBC she received a letter tucked under her door informing her of the increase. 

“When I opened it I was shocked,” she said. Initially, she was told her rent would increase by more than $600 a month. 

CBC has agreed to not name the resident because she is concerned that speaking out would affect her housing.

She’s frustrated about how residents were told of the situation. 

“They could have sat down and talked to us about what was going to be happening instead of just putting that paper under the door,” she said. 

Since then, the increases have been revised. 

Residents were notified of those revisions via hand-delivered letters. 

Women receiving income assistance, including the resident that spoke to CBC, should have their increases covered because income assistance is proportional to expenses, including rent.

Increase necessary, says YWCA

The NWT YWCA, which owns the building, says that the rent increases are necessary to ensure that Lynn’s Place stays open.

“In order to make this sustainable…this is something that we needed to do,” Hawa Dumbuya-Sesay, YWCA’s executive director said. 

“It’s not about making money. We’re not making any money out of this. We’re going into a loss despite any increase.” 

YWCA has operated Lynn’s Place since 2014. The building was donated to the organization by the territory without a mortgage. 

Dunbuya-Sesay said this was the first time the organization was raising rent since opening. 

On the YWCA’s website, Lynn’s Place is “a stable, safe, affordable place to call home for women who need safe housing after leaving a violent relationship, or who are ready to find stability in a safe environment.”

“The way it works is the government gives you a building and then you’re supposed to keep it going with the rent,” said Dunbuya-Sesay. 

“But the reality is the rent does not really cover the 24/7 staffing, the programming, and then the maintenance and upkeep of the building.” 

But not everyone is buying the argument. Community advocate Arlene Hache says she was contacted by a resident at Lynn’s Place after being notified of the increase. 

Hache says the YWCA should be more transparent around its finances. 

“I want them to prove it,” she said. “I want to see the actual expenses of Lynn’s place. I want to see the actual revenue.” 

She also questions how easily the original increase changed to the lower amount. 

According to Dumbuya-Sesay, the rent increase was changed to a lower number because the original rent increases did not meet criteria to be considered “affordable” based on criteria from the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CMHC). 

“That was my error when I was calculating the CMHC figures, and so we have made corrections to that,” she said. 

Dumbuya-Sesay said staff are working with residents to connect them with resources to prepare for higher rent.