Living Conditions

A household is considered to be poor when it devotes 63% or more of its income to food, rent and clothing.

Housing costs have the greatest impact on living conditions. When a household devotes more than 30% of its income to rent, it is considered to be spending too much on housing and at risk of having financial difficulty meeting its other basic needs.

Monthly budget of a 40-year-old single mother, with a 14-year-old son, working 35 hours a week at the minimum wage

Salary at $10.15 per hour: $1,539 per month

Minimum cost of monthly food bill: $511

Average cost of a two-bedroom apartment on Montreal Island: $737

What she has left for other expenses (telephone, electricity, clothing, transportation, personal care, school supplies, in some cases debt repayment, etc.): $291

Finding suitable housing in Greater Montreal

• The average rent is higher in the Montreal census metropolitan area than in Quebec province as a whole.
• Many households live in housing they cannot afford: the proportion of renter households that devote 30% or more of their income to rent is 39% on Montreal Island, 37% in Laval and 33% on the South Shore.
• Between 2000 and 2003 in the Montreal census metropolitan area, the average rent increased by 15.3% for one-bedroom units, 13% for two-bedroom units and 12.7% for three bedroom units.
• Montreal is where low-income people and those who have the most difficulty finding suitable housing are concentrated: single-parent families, persons living alone and recent immigrants.
• The number of households awaiting social housing is 23,000 on Montreal Island, 1,000 in Laval and 3,900 in the Montérégie (including 1,200 in Longueuil alone).

Feeding yourself in Greater Montreal

• The proportion of people in a situation of moderate to serious food insecurity is 9% (139,000) on Montreal Island, 5% (16,400) in Laval and 4% (50,000) in the Montérégie.
• 48% of students in schools under the Montreal School Board come from disadvantaged backgrounds and are likely to need nutritional support, although only 18% receive such support.
• On Montreal Island, half of all households that use food assistance agencies are composed of families with children.

Lasting soultions for improving the living conditions of individuals and families

• Promote social housing
• Support housing search and advocate tenants’ rights
• Develop job-readiness activities
• Develop food security initiatives
• Provide family budgeting education and support
• Offer front-line services: nutritional support, reception, friendly listening, assistance and referral