High rents keeping Quebecers in poverty, IRIS study shows

Real estate signage showing an apartment for rent is seen on Monday, May 15, 2023 in Montreal. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press)

Rising rents are making it increasingly difficult to escape poverty. The situation has particularly deteriorated in Gatineau and Montreal, according to a study by the Institut de recherche et d’informations socioéconomiques (IRIS) published Wednesday.

“The housing situation, with rents rising at the rate they are rising, is taking a heavy toll on household budgets, especially for households trying to escape poverty,” said Eve-Lyne Couturier, a researcher at the left-wing think-tank, in an interview with The Canadian Press.

The average rise in rents was 11 per cent in 2024 in Quebec’s major urban centres, reports IRIS. The increase was even greater in Gatineau, where the rent for a 3.5-bedroom flat rose by an average of 16 per cent.

Being able to count on the public transport network can be an advantage for people on low incomes compared with less densely populated areas, but rising housing costs can reduce this advantage.

“It’s clear that for some cities, particularly Montreal and Gatineau, where the increases have been very substantial, the cost of housing is more or less the same as having an extra car if you compare it to the income of families in Trois-Rivières or Saguenay, for example,” said Couturier.

The situation in Gatineau can be explained by the higher turnover rate among tenants, explained the researcher. “That’s part of the explanation because we know that landlords take advantage of a change of tenant to make increases that are more substantial.”

In 2015, IRIS developed the “sustainable income,” which is intended as an alternative indicator to the poverty line. Viable income includes basic needs, but also the expenditure needed to “live with dignity,” including, for example, holidays, cultural outings and savings to meet unforeseen circumstances.

IRIS measured the indicator in seven Quebec municipalities for three household profiles: a single person, a single-parent family and a family of four.

Depending on the different situations, the sustainable income threshold varied from a drop of 4 per cent to an increase of 10.4 per cent, according to IRIS.

For example, a single person in Trois-Rivières needs $42,110 to reach a viable income. A family of four in Saguenay needs an income of $75,534.

“For a single person working full-time, the minimum wage is insufficient to reach a sustainable income,” Couturier points out. The minimum wage will rise by $0.35 to $16.10 on Thursday.

“If we want to get out of poverty with a full-time job, we should be talking about a minimum wage of around $28 an hour,” she said. “There is a huge gap between the minimum wage that will come into effect on May 1 and the wage that will really lift people out of poverty.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French April 30, 2025.