As changes to Residential Tenancies Act draw near, Yukoners react

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Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-30 17:51:39.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Governance]

Yukon Party MLAs voted to pass statutory amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act, effectively eliminating territorial rent caps and reintroducing no-cause evictions effective December 1. The legislative changes, spearheaded by Community Services Minister Cory Bellmore and supported by Premier Currie Dixon, aim to transition the territory to a market-based rental system and encourage housing investment. The Yukon Residential Landlord Association estimated that landlords have withdrawn more than 200 rental units from the market since rent controls were implemented in 2021, while opposition parties and housing advocates criticized the measures for lacking supporting data and negatively impacting tenant housing security.

Elders' home, transitional housing among Nunavik priorities for new federal funds

This article is new today!

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-30 16:34:17.0
Tags: [National, Quebec, Housing, Indigenous, Healthcare, Seniors]

The Government of Canada announced $130 million in funding for Inuit treaty organizations, with more than $32 million allocated to Makivvik to support regional priorities in Nunavik. Makivvik plans to put the funds toward a new elders' home in Kuujjuaq, Quebec, and transitional housing in Montreal, following the relocation of 13 elders due to structural issues at a previous facility. Additional allocations from the $130 million package include $16.9 million for the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, $15.5 million for the Nunatsiavut government, and $65 million for Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated under the federal Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Fund.

Five more public housing units open in Behchokǫ̀, N.W.T.

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 23:15:30.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Indigenous, Social Services, Infrastructure]

Housing N.W.T. has completed and turned over keys for five new public housing units in Behchokǫ̀, consisting of a four-unit building and a three-bedroom single-family home. The modular units were built in Hay River, shipped to Behchokǫ̀ for assembly in April, and are designed to replace older public housing units that have reached the end of their usable life. This deployment follows a territorial needs assessment released in March by Housing N.W.T. indicating that over half of households in Behchokǫ̀ face housing challenges, alongside the recent arrival of eight additional public housing units and one more duplex expected by the end of the year.

6 provinces and territories exploring adoption of new CO detector rules, Sask. minister says

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 22:04:08.0
Tags: [Saskatchewan, National, Public Safety, Housing, Governance]

Effective November 1, 2026, Saskatchewan is enacting regulatory updates known as Henry's Law, which requires carbon monoxide alarms in all residential suites across multi-unit buildings, regardless of their location within the structure. Named in memory of 11-year-old Henry Losco, who died from carbon monoxide poisoning following a boiler leak in a Regina apartment building in December 2025, the legislation applies to both existing and new residential buildings. Saskatchewan's Minister of Government Relations Eric Schmalz announced that six other provincial and territorial jurisdictions—Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories—are actively exploring the adoption of similar carbon monoxide safety rules.

Dawson City, Yukon, leaders urge territory to retract no-cause eviction bill

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 19:12:01.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Governance]

The Yukon Legislative Assembly passed Bill 8, enacting amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act that reintroduce no-cause evictions and scrap rent control. In response, Dawson City Mayor Stephen Johnson, the Dawson City Council, and former territorial NDP candidate Francis van Kessel sent letters urging Premier Currie Dixon and Minister of Community Services Cory Bellmore to retract the legislation due to severe rental scarcity and potential strains on community social services.

Proposed new residential development in Whitehorse clears another hurdle

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 18:46:19.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Infrastructure, Municipal]

The Whitehorse city council unanimously passed a master plan for the proposed Highland Estates residential development by Lobird Living Corp., clearing a key hurdle to add 16 country-residential lots near the Lobird mobile home park. The project addresses a severe local housing shortage highlighted by the city's 2026 assessment noting a deficit of 2,800 housing units. Individual lots are estimated to cost about $400,000, with total home construction costs projected to exceed $800,000. Further progress requires additional municipal processes, including zoning bylaw amendments and lot subdivision.

Anxiety grows as Yukon Health Minister moves to crack down on tents outside shelter

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-29 17:02:35.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Social Services, Public Safety]

Yukon Health and Social Services Minister Brad Cathers has announced steps to crack down on tents set up outside the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter, citing concerns over illicit drug dealing. The territory is coordinating actions with shelter management, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Fire Marshal’s Office, and bylaw services. The crackdown unfolds amid soaring living costs in Whitehorse, where the latest inflation rate stands at 6.1 per cent and the living wage has risen to $32.43 per hour for a single-person household, while the shelter operates at 64 per cent capacity.

Yukon gov't passes amendments to Residential Tenancies Act, scrapping rent control

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-28 21:04:27.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Governance]

The Yukon government passed legislative amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act, effectively scrapping the territorial residential rent cap and permitting no-cause evictions. Backed by Yukon Party MLAs and spearheaded by Community Services Minister Cory Bellmore, the changes are scheduled to take effect on December 1, 2026. While the territorial government asserts that removing rent control will incentivize private-sector rental housing investment and increase long-term supply, housing advocates and opposition politicians have criticized the policy for exacerbating cost-of-living pressures for tenants.

Yukon minister directing ‘crackdown’ of tents outside Whitehorse shelter, but won’t say how

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-27 15:44:59.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Social Services, Public Safety, Governance]

Yukon Health and Social Services Minister Brad Cathers stated in the Yukon Legislative Assembly that he has directed his department to crack down on tents outside the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter at 405 Alexander St. The minister stated he instructed his department to collaborate with the Department of Justice, the Department of Highways and Public Works, the RCMP, and the City of Whitehorse bylaw services to remove the encampments. Liberal Party Leader and Vuntut Gwitchin MLA Debra-Leigh Reti criticized the lack of operational clarity regarding the plan and called for a dedicated task force to assess the needs of individuals outside the shelter. The announcement coincides with ongoing legislative debate surrounding proposed amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act and the elimination of rent control in the Yukon.

As the Yukon moves to lift rent control, we asked how many MLAs are landlords

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-23 11:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Governance]

The Yukon government has tabled legislation to amend the territory's Residential Tenancies Act by lifting the residential rent cap and reintroducing no-cause evictions. CBC News analysis revealed that 6 of the territory's 21 MLAs (or roughly 28.6 per cent)—including four from the governing Yukon Party and two from the NDP—are landlords or have partners who are landlords, prompting conflict of interest concerns from the Official Opposition. However, the territorial conflict of interest commissioner determined that no conflict of interest exists regarding the vote because the legislative amendments apply broadly across the rental market rather than targeting specific properties or individuals.

Yukon Housing to test Whitehorse units for lead in drinking water after elevated levels found last year

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-21 17:02:29.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Infrastructure, Public Safety]

The Yukon Housing Corporation will conduct additional drinking water testing across public housing units in Whitehorse during the winter and spring following 2025 testing that identified elevated lead levels. Out of 192 units initially tested, 22 showed lead levels exceeding Health Canada guidelines, with follow-up assessments confirming higher-than-acceptable levels in six units (five occupied, one vacant, with no children residing in them). Yukon Housing Corporation Minister Scott Kent stated that stagnant water is the primary cause, prompting plans to flush vacant units and prioritize testing in older residential buildings constructed before 1990 that feature copper plumbing with lead-based solder.

8 new housing units, built in Hay River, arrive in Behchokǫ̀

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-20 22:55:41.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Social Services, Indigenous, Infrastructure]

Housing N.W.T. has delivered eight new modular social housing units, constructed as four duplexes by METCAN Building Solutions in Hay River, to the community of Behchokǫ̀, with a final duplex scheduled for delivery by the end of the year to bring the total to ten units. The units are expected to be ready for occupancy by December to address a high local demand for one-bedroom social housing. This delivery forms part of a broader territorial initiative funded by a three-year, $150 million investment to construct 98 single-occupant housing units across nine Northwest Territories communities—including Behchokǫ̀, Fort Providence, Tuktoyaktuk, Inuvik, Délı̨nę, Tulita, Fort Simpson, Ulukhaktok, and Fort Smith—by March 2028.

40 homes a year, 40 full-time staff, Arviat housing factory opens to fanfare

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-16 10:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Indigenous, Infrastructure, Labour, Economy]

Sakku Innovative Building Solutions—the development arm of the Kivalliq Inuit Association (KIA)—has officially opened Nunavut's first Inuit-owned modular housing factory in Arviat, following a 40 per cent cost increase to a total project price tag of $70 million. Operating year-round, the facility is designed to produce 40 homes annually specifically for northern climates, beginning with an initial project of nine three-bedroom homes for Arviat by spring. The factory currently employs 15 full-time staff, 14 of whom are Inuit, and will scale up to 40 full-time employees while providing local training in carpentry, plumbing, and electrical work to address severe territorial housing shortages and overcrowding.

Housing advocate fears removing rent control will thwart plan to end homelessness

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-15 19:45:44.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Social Services, Governance]

The Yukon territorial government endorsed the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition's 112-page community action plan to end homelessness, titled A Place to Be, while simultaneously introducing a bill in the Legislative Assembly via Community Services Minister Cory Bellmore to repeal rent caps and reintroduce no-cause evictions. Kristina Craig, executive director of the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition, expressed concern that the elimination of rent control will jeopardize housing stability for current renters and undermine progress toward the plan's 29 recommendations. Scott Kent, the minister responsible for the Yukon Housing Corporation, stated that the government supports the plan's vision but declined to endorse its target of reducing homelessness by 50 percent in two years, while highlighting forthcoming housing developments such as 34 units at the former Korbo apartment site in Dawson City and 184 units delivered in partnership with the Da Daghay Development Corporation.

No new help for tenants facing end of rent cap, Yukon premier says

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-14 18:30:53.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Governance]

Yukon Premier Currie Dixon's government introduced legislative amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act in the Yukon Legislative Assembly to eliminate pandemic-era rent caps tied to inflation and restore no-cause evictions, with the changes scheduled to take effect as early as December 1. Premier Dixon stated that the government has no plans to introduce new tenant subsidies beyond an existing federal-territorial housing subsidy program for low- and middle-income households. Housing advocates, the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition, and NDP Leader Kate White criticized the repeal, warning it will exacerbate affordability and cost-of-living pressures amidst a tight territory rental vacancy rate of 2.4 per cent and a Whitehorse vacancy rate of 1.5 per cent.

Homelessness endures in Yellowknife after city adopted plan to prevent it by 2026

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-14 10:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Social Services, Indigenous, Municipal]

Despite the City of Yellowknife adopting a 10-year plan in 2017 with the objective of eliminating homelessness by 2026, severe housing scarcity and encampments persist across the municipality. Administered by the City of Yellowknife, the federal Reaching Home program has allocated approximately $21 million between 2019 and 2028 to fund initiatives like the Home Base Line Drive Outreach program and the Yellowknife Women's Society Housing First program. Mayor Ben Hendriksen confirmed the original 10-year plan remains active without formal updates or reviews since its adoption, while housing advocates urge the city to expand land availability, increase low-income housing stock, and integrate Indigenous lived experts into municipal policymaking.

Behchokǫ̀ woman fights brain cancer and an 8-year wait for housing

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-09 10:00:00.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Indigenous, Social Services, Healthcare]

Phoebe Nadezo, a 49-year-old resident of Behchokǫ̀, Northwest Territories, has faced an eight-and-a-half-year wait for a social housing unit while battling brain cancer and homelessness since 2015. Housing N.W.T. reports that 168 applicants are currently on the social housing waitlist in Behchokǫ̀, where the average wait time is approximately two years. While Housing N.W.T. has cited recent initiatives—including five modular homes near completion, 10 units under construction, and a $480 million joint territorial-federal investment announced in July 2026 under Build Canada Homes for up to 560 units—local leaders like Monfwi MLA Jane Weyallon Armstrong point to systemic failures, such as over 10 boarded-up detached homes sitting empty due to a lack of repair budgets.

Yukon to eliminate rent control, allow no-cause evictions

Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
Date: 2026-10-09 01:34:16.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Governance]

Yukon Community Services Minister Cory Bellmore introduced amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act in the Yukon Legislative Assembly to eliminate the territory's residential rent control cap and allow no-cause evictions effective December 1. The previous rent cap, enacted in 2021 by Sandy Silver's government under a deal with the NDP, limited annual rent increases to the average rate of inflation for the previous two years. Under the proposed amendments put forward by the Yukon Party government holding a legislative majority, landlords will be required to provide tenants with at least six months notice prior to implementing a rent increase or eviction, an increase from the previous three-month requirement. Opposition Leader and NDP Leader Kate White criticized the changes as devastating for housing affordability, while questioning whether government members who are landlords could be in a conflict of interest regarding the vote.

Ottawa to provide $2B in rebates for homeowners who install heat pumps

Source: CBC Politics
Date: 2026-10-08 15:57:40.0
Tags: [National, Energy, Environment, Housing, Affordability]

The federal government, led by Prime Minister Mark Carney, is launching a $2-billion rebate program to help an estimated 820,000 homeowners across Canada install new heat pumps or replace existing heating systems over the next eight years. Officials state that the program will save participating homeowners an average of $1,400 annually on heating bills while lowering emissions. Additionally, Ottawa is partnering with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) to offer low-interest financing enabling apartment building owners to retrofit more than 280,000 homes over the same eight-year period.

Ottawa considering ‘options’ as foreign home buyer ban nears end: minister

Source: Global News Politics
Date: 2026-10-07 20:34:15.0
Tags: [National, Housing, Affordability, Economy, Finance]

Federal Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced that the Liberal government is considering options regarding the future of the ban on foreign ownership of Canadian residential property. The restriction, originally enacted in 2022 to cool housing markets for Canadian buyers and previously extended in 2024, is scheduled to sunset in January 2027. The government's decision on whether to extend, modify, or allow the ban to expire will be evaluated based on housing stock availability and market evolution ahead of the upcoming federal budget.