The Charlatan: A tale of two cities-Renting in Gatineau versus Ottawa

A quick scroll through Facebook Marketplace or Kijiji will quickly reveal a large price discrepancy between apartments in Ottawa versus those across the river in Gatineau, Que. According to statistics compiled by Best in Ottawa in June 2024, rent in Gatineau is on average 31 per cent less expensive than in Ottawa.

The gulf in affordability effectively forces some Carleton students to choose between Gatineau’s lower prices and higher commute times, or Ottawa’s higher rates and shorter commutes. But why is there such a stark cost difference between Ottawa and Gatineau housing?

Housing advocates are pointing to a lack of rent control as the problem.

Ottawa vs. Gatineau

A challenging calculation involving commute times and price is undertaken by many Carleton students in their housing decisions.

“Many people are [living in] Gatineau because of the apartment price,” said Tamirat Ganeda, a representative from the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN).

“There is a great difference between Ottawa and Gatineau.”

For many students, including Carleton student Robert Brown, saving a few hundred dollars in rent each month is worth enduring long commutes to campus.

“If [Ottawa] was cheaper than Gatineau, then I would definitely consider it more,” said Brown, who grew up in Gatineau.

“I’d rather sacrifice and commute if I can save on rent.”

Brown said his average commute lasts “40 minutes at best, one hour at worst.”
However, some students said the transportation shortcomings within the city means renting in Gatineau isn’t even a realistic option.
Bradley Gray-Hall, a Carleton and Algonquin College joint information technology and networking student, said proximity was one of the two largest factors in his decision to rent in Ontario, along with cost.

“If I could drive, I’d probably live in Gatineau,” Gray-Hall said.

The multiple transfers and unreliable OC Transpo arrival times mean the public transit journey from Gatineau to Carleton can take commuters more than an hour to complete.

Gray-Hall said the convenience of an easy commute is why so many students settle for Ottawa’s higher rent prices. He added that the cost of owning a car leaves student renters with no alternative but to brave Ottawa rent prices.

“It’s a mix of transit and the price of housing getting worse,” Gray-Hall said.

‘Provincial policy has a huge impact on rent’

According to the Ontario government’s housing policy, private residential units built prior to 2018 are under a fixed maximum rent increase rate, otherwise known as rent control. For 2025, the rent control guideline is 2.5 per cent.

However, there are two conditions under which units can be exempted from that rent control guideline.

The Ontario government’s policy dictates that buildings and additions occupied for the first time following Nov. 15, 2018, or built or modified after that date, do not fall under the provincial rent control policy. With some student houses exempt from rent control, the policy adds another layer of difficulty for students seeking affordable, rent-controlled housing.

Introduced by the Ford Progressive Conservatives in 2018, this rent control exemption intends to incentivize new development to meet housing supply demands.
“In Ontario, most housing is rent-controlled during a tenancy,” said Daniel Tucker-Simmons, a representative of Horizon Ottawa, an Ottawa environmental and housing advocacy group.
Tucker-Simmons said that while landlords are only able to raise rent under the provincial rent control guideline when their units are occupied, they’re able to significantly raise rent for their units when they’re unoccupied and in between tenants.

“The amount you are paying in rent can only be increased a little bit during a tenancy,” Tucker-Simmons said. “[After a tenancy] it’s only limited by the market.”

A large factor for the cost disparity between Ottawa and Gatineau’s rentals is Quebec’s robust rent control policy.

Quebec does not have fixed rent control, according to the Canadian Centre for Housing Rights. However, unlike in Ontario, tenants in Quebec can refuse rent increases by their landlords. A refusal prompts the Quebec rental tribunal to review the rent increase proposal to determine if the rent is fair.

This process results in more affordable rental prices for Quebec cities such as Gatineau.

Many housing advocacy groups, including ACORN, are pushing for the reintroduction of rent control to all Ontario buildings.

As a community-based organization consisting of low and middle-income people, ACORN advocates for housing justice and fights against landlords through direct action. Ganeda said ACORN’s Ottawa division is particularly interested in expanding Ontario rent control to all buildings.

Ganeda said this initiative would allow for more affordable housing, especially for students, who are more susceptible to being price-gouged by landlords.

“Provincial policy has a huge impact on rent,” Tucker-Simmons said. “In Ontario, the fact that there are so few controls really creates conditions for significant rent increases year after year.”

Looking toward solutions

Tucker-Simmons recommends young renters “get organized” if they wish to see changes in the rental landscape.

He said students can advocate for better housing control in Ontario by participating in provincial elections, joining housing interest groups and applying pressure on their municipal and provincial governments.

However, he said the root cause of the housing affordability crisis — the lack of housing supply — must be adequately addressed as well.

“The only solution to the housing crisis is significant public investment in housing,” Tucker-Simmons said.

With over a more than a year until the next provincial election in June 2026, he encourages students to join housing organizations and advocate for their needs.

“Landlords are very well organized and they’re just going to keep raising rents and students are in a very weak bargaining position,” Tucker-Simmons said.

“The only way to fight is at a political level.”

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Article by Syd Robbescheuten for The Charlatan