Over several decades, CCHR has consistently heard from renters facing discrimination in the rental housing market. Renters who are searching for housing will often report that they have been denied the opportunity to view or apply for an apartment, or that their rental applications are rejected based on some aspect of their identity, such as their immigration status, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, racial or ethnic background, age, the composition of their family, or because they are receiving social assistance.
CCHR’s research studies – from our 2009, 2022 and 2025 discrimination audits – have found that marginalized groups face high levels of discrimination when searching for rental housing in communities across Canada, and also while living in their rental units.
The results of our research indicate that the groups who face more barriers to access rental housing are lower income households, families with children, single people, women, Indigenous people, racialized people, newcomers and people with disabilities. However, the extent to which these groups experience discrimination before and during tenancies varies. Newcomers and racialized people face more barriers when searching for housing than other groups. People with disabilities and households with children face more issues once renting than other groups, while lower income households face discrimination both before and during their tenancy.
Under the National Housing Strategy Act (NHSA), the federal government has committed to uphold the right to housing and improve housing outcomes for the people in greatest need. This commitment extends to provincial, territorial and municipal governments as well. Discrimination in the private rental market constitutes a significant barrier to advancing the right to housing, and all our governments must implement strong measures to prevent discrimination in housing.
The most direct way to do this is by increasing the supply of non-profit housing and prioritizing access for the groups most impacted by discrimination. This means dedicating and prioritizing funding to increase the supply of affordable, accessible and culturally adequate housing for lower income households, including Indigenous, Black and other racialized households, newcomers, families, multi-generational households and people with disabilities. Other measures should also be implemented to target housing practices that result in discrimination.
Reducing barriers to accessing affordable and adequate housing
The Government of Canada should implement policies and provide legal protections to reduce discrimination that act as a barrier to accessing housing, prioritizing racialized groups and non-citizens, such as:
- Dedicating funding to support Black-led and other intersectional organizations and civil society groups in addressing the specific challenges that Black and racialized households face in securing housing.
- Dedicating funding to support settlement organizations and other civil society groups in addressing the specific challenges that newcomers face in securing housing.
- Providing temporary housing assistance to non-citizens to help pay for security deposits and short-term rentals while they look for a permanent, stable home. For example, the Interim Housing Assistance Program could be expanded to include new permanent residents and temporary residents with acute housing needs.
- Establishing no-fee guarantor services to support newcomers to access housing upon arrival in Canada.
- Including social condition as a prohibited ground of discrimination in federal, provincial and territorial legislation, so that people who have demonstrated capacity to pay do not face discrimination based on their income level.
- Amending the NHSA to explicitly recognize discrimination based on human rights grounds as a barrier to the enjoyment of the right to housing.
- Requiring provincial and territorial governments to amend their Residential Tenancies Acts to prevent discrimination during the pre-tenancy period. For instance, landlords should be prohibited from asking for more than one month of rent as a security deposit and should clearly state eligibility criteria when advertising available units. In addition, prospective renters without a lease should be able to bring applications to their provincial or territorial housing tribunal if landlords breach these conditions.
Preventing landlord harassment and neglect in the home
Everyone has the right to the peaceful enjoyment of their home, and to live in well-maintained housing that does not threaten their health or safety. The Government of Canada should implement policies and provide legal protections to reduce discrimination during tenancies, prioritizing people with disabilities and families with children, such as:
- Increasing funding to federal, provincial and territorial human rights tribunals and commissions to ensure complaints of discrimination are addressed swiftly.
- Increasing funding to legal aid systems so that people who are raising a human rights complaint can get assistance and representation throughout the process.
- All levels of government funding the development of education programs that are designed to support renters learning about their legal rights and housing providers learning about their legal obligations.
- Requiring provincial and territorial governments to establish minimum residential maintenance standards in their laws and supporting municipalities in the development of rental licensing programs to ensure rental homes are well-maintained and livable. These programs should be implemented in a way that meets the specific safety needs of renters, with strong monitoring and enforcement mechanisms.
- Creating and funding rental housing navigation services to help renters access the supports they need and mediate with landlords on their behalf when issues arise during tenancies. These services should place emphasis on helping renters with disabilities navigate housing challenges.
Mitigating the impacts of the financialization of housing
The level of discrimination that marginalized renters face is in part a consequence of the financialization of housing. This research found that discrimination in housing is more pronounced in a tight housing market, where bigger, more expensive units in areas with low vacancy rates are out of reach for marginalized groups. Without an adequate supply of diverse affordable housing options for lower income households, federal, provincial and territorial governments must implement measures that reduce the impacts that the financialization of housing has on access to housing by marginalized groups.
- Federal, provincial and territorial governments need to improve their targets for government-funded affordable housing and prioritize funding allocations to non-profit providers to ensure that marginalized groups have access to housing that meets their needs.
- In addition to greater investment in non-market, community housing that is protected from market forces, all levels of government must collaborate to ensure that affordable and non-market housing options are protected and expanded for lower income households.
- Provincial and territorial governments should implement effective rent regulation measures, including vacancy control, to prevent unfair rent increases and economic evictions.
- Federal, provincial and territorial governments should overcome the legal and operational bottlenecks in addressing housing discrimination by funding and investigating the nature, scope and impact of discriminatory housing practices.
