N.L. woman says province's red tape has forced her into homelessness — and is keeping her there indefinitely
Income support takes too long to pay damage deposit, rent, says Jaime Ryan
A homeless woman says she's struggling to find a place to live because of the way Newfoundland and Labrador Housing and the province's income support program are structured.
Jaime Ryan says she's been scouring the rental listings on Facebook, and has even had some success. But because it takes two weeks or longer for the province to pay landlords the damage deposit and first month's rent, Ryan says she's been passed over in favour of other tenants.
"I'm after losing four apartments, plus a room that I could could have rented," Ryan said.
"There's no landlord out there that's going to commit to signing a lease to you when you got 499 people behind you with cash in hand."
The rental market in the St. John's area is tight and competition is fierce, with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation last October estimating the vacancy rate for a one-bedroom apartment at 1.6 per cent and even lower for a two-bedroom, at 1.3 per cent.
Ryan had been living with her mother but said can no longer stay there.
Since the end of August, she said, she has been couch surfing and staying with friends. Sleeping in the province's shelter system isn't an option because they're full, she said.
As someone in recovery, she says there are also too many drug users.
"This is why most of the homeless people that's around town are homeless — because the system is broken," she said.
"The only one that can change the system is Andrew Furey, and he's not listening. I've phoned his office in Deer Lake. I phoned his office at the Confederation Building, multiple times."
Ryan says after she called the premier's office, the president of Newfoundland and Labrador Housing called her but since she's already been approved for the rental subsidy, he couldn't help.
"It's not the right department. The department that got to change is the social assistance department," she said.
Until she can find a landlord willing to wait for the province to pay the damage deposit, Ryan says, she isn't giving up. She's just taking things day by day and trying to find a safe place to sleep at night.
"You look outside. You picked the best tree. You picked the best spot. You find shelter the best way you can," said Ryan.
"You go to the soup kitchens for your meals, but there's no such things as snacks, coffees, anything like that. There's nothing. There's no such thing as a shower or clean clothes or extra clothes. You don't get none of that. There's no pillows, no blankets."
Ryan says she has applied for an N.L. Housing unit, but many of their units are bigger and better suited for families rather than a single person.
She's waitlisted, she says, to stay at the new transitional housing facility at the former Comfort Inn hotel near the St. John's airport.
"That's how many people are homeless here in this city," she said.
Ryan's situation not unique, say advocates
Jim Dinn, the province's NDP leader, says Ryan isn't alone.
"It seems to be increasingly common now. Not only that, but we're also getting people who are being charged what they call holding fees to hold the place while the application is being processed," Dinn said, who is Ryan's MHA and has been advocating on her behalf.
Dinn also says Ryan and those in a similar position are caught in the middle of a bureaucratic catch-22.
"The landlord is willing to provide a lease but he wants the damage deposit first. Housing, or [social services], before they issue the damage deposit, they want the lease," Dinn said.
Dinn says the solution would be a letter of guarantee for the damage deposit from the province and said he has suggested the measure to the finance minister.
Doug Pawson, executive director of End Homelessness St. John's, says he is hearing similar complaints from people struggling to find housing.
Pawson says the lag time for deposits and rent to be paid to landlords can be lengthy.
"Landlords prefer not to rent to folks if they're in that situation. And it just further stigmatizes people further, puts people further behind and puts them at further risk of homelessness," Pawson said.
Meanwhile, Ryan says having no fixed address creates even more problems for her.
"You can't get assistance without an address, so if you don't have an address, you don't get money," she said.
Ryan says she'd also like bureaucrats she's been dealing with to have more compassion for those who are struggling with homelessness.
"These people that have been calling, it's OK for them because once they leave the office, they're going home to their homes, their families.... When I get off the phone, I'm looking in around trying to say, OK, there's a safe place for me to sleep tonight," she said.
CBC News requested an interview with Children, Seniors and Social Development Minister Paul Pike but was sent a statement instead.
Spokesperson Kathryn Summers wrote that the department can't speak specifically to Ryan's case.
Summers said the income support program issues $372 to help people who qualify contribute to a security deposit.
"A recipient needs to provide written verification from the landlord, normally in the form of a rental agreement, to confirm need and verify eligibility. Once this is complete, funds can be issued immediately to the recipient through direct deposit. This is consistent with other program eligibility assurance practices," reads the statement.
For Ryan, attitudes toward homelessness are at the heart of the problem.
"Not every homeless person is on assistance. Not every homeless person is on drugs. Not every homeless person is out there to take, take, take," she said.
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