Shawna Johnston has faced this situation before — one that many low-income renters dread: being forced to find a new place to live.
Johnston and her son moved into her current rental in October of 2021 after her previous landlord sold the large home she was renting and she subsequently had to leave. As of July 31, Johnston will once again have to be in a new rental.
Johnston said the landlord expressed concerns about the condition of the suite and the amount of storage being used, closets being too full and that inspections sometimes took place without much notice. The landlord provided Johnston with photos of the suite prior to possession and during the walk throughs, noting all the changes she wanted made.
“There was a little shoe cabinet by the door when I moved in and when I moved it, I found (a) rats' nest … I told my landlord about it and she tried to get me to pay for pest control. I won in arbitration, though.”
While Johnston has fought the current allegations through arbitration, she agreed to be out of the basement suite she rents in a month. She is over-stressed and overwhelmed by the constant negative attention she receives from both her landlord and the neighbours in the subdivision.
The stress of the situation has proven to be too much for Johnston’s son, who has already vacated the basement suite and is living with friends. He suffers from anxiety and the pressure to find new housing has proven to be too much for him.
Finding a rental for Johnston and her dog Zeus is proving to be difficult. Johnston has several disabilities and is on Persons With Disabilities income from the province of B.C. - this limits the amount of money she has to spend on rent. She currently receives help from Dawn to Dawn, but that barely makes rent affordable.
“Dawn to Dawn helps top up what I pay for rent, but in a new rental, they can only kick in about $270 which means I would have about $500 a month to pay for all my utilities and buy food for myself and Zeus.”
Zeus is a larger dog with a sweet disposition, but due to his size, he automatically disqualified Johnston from some rentals. Johnston refuses to give him up, though, as her pets are part of her family.
“Some friends have said if you could just let go of - and I stop them right there. Zeus is my family. I could never give him up. I’ve been training him to be an emotional support animal but since he is still in training, I have no paperwork for him and that has disqualified me from getting a place before.”
Johnston is preparing for the worst outcome - being unhoused. She has a large, two-room tent, a camping stove with propane and a large new tarp. While this is a last resort, as time ticks on, she is closer and closer to spending her days in a tent.
“I’m 54 years old. I’ve done a lot of camping in my life, but I eventually needed an air mattress. Now, I don’t know if I could get up from an air mattress.”
Johnston spends her days scrolling through rental listings on Facebook groups, Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, local rental companies and conversing with people who have trailers for rent.
“A few places were offering $100 off if you signed a one-year lease, but those have been taken. I’ve found bachelor suites for $1,550, but that is ridiculous.”
