Online housing network not ‘magic bullet’

Winnipeg Rental Network helps low-income renters find a home, but isn’t a cure-all

Melody Morrissette

A recently launched online resource known as the Winnipeg Rental Network is addressing inadequate levels of housing information for those seeking low-income rental units in the city.

“There are not a lot of really great sources to find the information,” said Gord McIntyre, co-ordinator of the Winnipeg Rental Network.

The website brings together landlords, low-income individuals seeking affordable housing and various community and housing organizations into one Internet network.

It was launched in April by numerous non-profit organizations in order to create a listing of housing options for low-income people, says Patrick Macklem, rental safety co-ordinator for the Spence Neighbourhood Association.

So far, McIntyre has seen a significant response to the website. He said that as of May 13, the website had received just under 6,000 Internet hits since its April 15 launch. He also added that the site has been averaging 100 to 150 hits per day, and has had various landlords post a total of 33 rental properties so far.

Macklem noted that the impetus behind the creation of the rental network website came from a lack of any comparable resources within the city to address the issue of accessible information for low-income renters.

“If you have money to spend, you don’t have a hard time finding a place, but if you are on employment and income assistance, then your rental allowance every month is less than $300 for a single person,” he said.

However, Macklem also said that the rental network website will not be a ‘magic bullet’ to cure the affordable housing problem in Winnipeg.

Jim Silver, chair of the politics department at the University of Winnipeg, said that while the rental network is a good thing, it will not solve the problem of a lack of affordable housing in Winnipeg.

“In the absence of a national housing strategy, we are doing tiny ameliorative things to address the problem,” he said.

But the website is envisioned as more than a housing listings database.

“Part of it is also that [through] the network of all these different agencies, we are all going to compile information and start working together to paint a picture of the real demand for affordable housing that is not being met,” said Marianne Cerilli, co-ordinator for the West Central Women’s Resource Centre HOMES program.

Published in Volume 63, Number 27 of The Uniter (May 20, 2009)

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