Yukon landlords won’t be able to increase rents by more than 2 per cent.
The territorial government set the 2025 rent increase at two per cent to reflect inflation rates, according to a Feb. 11 press release.
The previous year’s rent index — set on May 15, 2024 — was 4.9 per cent. Rent increases that come into effect up until May 14 will be subject to the 4.9 per cent maximum increase, whereas any increases as of May 15 must be limited to the 2 per cent increase, according to community services department spokesperson Wayne Potoroka.
As landlords must provide 3 months’ notice of a rent increase, any new notices of rent increase served will be subject to 2 per cent rent index, said Potoroka.
The rent index is tied to the Consumer Price Index — a measure of inflation — for Whitehorse calculated by Statistics Canada with data from Statistics Canada and the Yukon Bureau of Statistics.
Landlords are not allowed to increase rents above that prescribed rent index of two per cent, and can choose to not increase rent, as per the press release. Landlords are also only able to increase rent after 12 months of tenancy, and then only once a year after that, according to the YG notice of rent increase form.
The rent index was part of the 2023 confidence and supply agreement (CASA) between the Yukon Liberals and Yukon NDP.
Kate Mechan is the executive director of Safe at Home. During a Feb. 12 phone interview, Mechan told the News that all the policy tools at hand should be used to ensure people aren’t taking advantage of the ability to increase rent.
“The vast majority of individuals who walk through Safe at Home’s door are struggling to pay their rent. They might be able to get part of the way there, but they just can't get all the way there,” said Mechan. “Non-payment of rent is consistently why people are facing eviction, and that includes in our Yukon Housing units.”
Per the 2023 CASA, landlords cannot evict a tenant without reason, except unless a landlord or their family are planning to live in the unit. However, non-payment of rent is a valid reason for eviction.
As Potoroka told the News in a Feb. 13 email, if a tenant receives a notice of rent increase for an amount above the allowed rent index (in this case, 2 per cent), they’re entitled to treat it as if the rent increase was the correct amount in line with rent index. The notice is essentially “deemed” to have the correct amount of rent increase — and that is all the tenant is obligated to pay, said Potoroka.
If the tenant has already overpaid on rent, then they can deduct the amount from the next payment or apply to the Residential Tenancies Office for an order to require the landlord to reimburse them, said Potoroka, although he encouraged tenants speak with their landlords first as it may simply be a math error.
“But, if this leads to conflict or if the tenant fears how their landlord will respond, they should not hesitate to contact the Residential Tenancies Office,” wrote Potoroka.
Mechan said that a policy such as the rent index can be toothless without the ability to monitor or hold people to account. She said she is looking forward to the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act revisions, and hoping there will be different mechanisms for advocacy to happen.
Mechan said while rents are increasing, wages are not necessarily doing the same. However, she also acknowledged that costs for landlords are also increasing.
“We're in a climate where everybody is trying to keep pace,” she said. She said landlords and tenants need to be brought together to find collective solutions.
Contact Talar Stockton at talar.stockton@yukon-news.com
