Lack of affordability, nowhere to go
In 2023 Lloyd began having medical challenges, according to medical records obtained by CTV News.
The records show that the diagnostics confirmed a “mixture of normally nonpathogenic fungi, suggestive of environmental contamination."
The mould was confirmed when a heating repairman visited the house to check on the furnace. Lloyd then had an air quality assessment done.
"It made perfect sense now why my lungs were so bad, why my sinuses were so bad," Lloyd said. She eventually lost hearing in one ear.
The landlord paid for a motel for Lloyd to stay in for a short duration, but that ended and Lloyd had nowhere else to go but the shed.
Lloyd is now locked in a Landlord Tenant Board dispute.
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Start Trading Today‘Absolutely catastrophic for older people’
Alyssa Brierley, a lawyer and the executive director of the National Institute of Ageing, says the over-65 population are among the “worst-off groups in Canada". The public policy institute, focused on improving the lives of older adults, claims that roughly 1.3 million older Canadians live in poverty.
Brierley told CTV News, "When you're older with limited financial means, you might have multiple health conditions to manage, you might be facing the loss of your community and social support system.”
The average rent in Midland is $2000. Meanwhile, The County of Simcoe considers affordable rent to be 70 to 80 percent of the current local rental market.
Brierley says, “If you have to move out of your neighbourhood or community to find other housing, it can be absolutely catastrophic for older people." She also notes how all levels of government need to work together to create affordable housing, including changing the definition of what is considered to be affordable.
According to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), Canada is entrenched in a housing affordability crisis, with seniors on a fixed income being especially vulnerable. Options for housing include supportive housing, and retirement homes to name a few.
Low-income seniors with disabilities can consider applying for annual provincial tax deferrals. Additionally, social or community housing is another option for low-income seniors.
In Lloyd’s case, the landlord and tenant hearing is scheduled for later this month.
While she has since secured temporary shelter as the shed has become too cold, it remains her backup living arrangement until a resolution is reached.
Sources
1. Zumper.com: Average rent in Midland
2. CMHC: Achieving housing affordability by the next decade
3. Canada.ca: Average cost of senior housing
4. Ontario.ca: Making changes to your home for senior living
5. Ontario.ca: Housing in Ontario
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