“Seniors are being displaced" - Karsten Kaemling, assistant manager of support and information services at the West End Seniors Network.Many senior renters have been in the same building for decades and when they're forced to find new accommodations, rental rates are much higher than what they’ve been previously paying. Annual rent increases can also start to put a squeeze on seniors’ limited incomes.Increasing rents mean many seniors have less and less money for other things — cable, food and other expenses often fall by the wayside in an effort to pay for housing.“What complicates a lot of things as well is they become isolated,” some end up forgoing a proper diet or withdrawing from social or recreational activities, as a larger percentage of their income has to go to housing.Read More: Seniors Giving Up Quality of Life to Pay Rent
Getting Help With Rent
Vancouver Rent Bank can offer a short term funding source that is available to families and individuals that live in the City of Vancouver, at risk of eviction or essential utility disconnection due to a temporary shortage of funds. As well we can provide a security deposit if current housing is deemed unsafe or unsustainable. Furthermore we provide low income individuals with the tools to better manage their limited financial resources.
Vancouver Rent Bank
The Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters (SAFER) program helps make rents affordable for BC seniors with low to moderate incomes. SAFER provides monthly cash payments to subsidize rents for eligible BC residents who are age 60 or over and who pay rent for their homes.
BC Housing provides SAFER subsidies to more than 17,000 senior households renting apartments in the private market, including singles, couples and people sharing a unit.Shelter Aid For Elderly Renters (SAFER)