This petition is being used to highlight how unaffordable hosuing and rent is for young adults!
Unaffordable housing is a problem because there is a large demand for new housing in Toronto. Young adults, including but not limited to those in post-secondary, recently graduated, or new professionals, are looking for residences but due to high demand, are unavailable to find any. On account of the high demand for houses and apartments, rent and housing prices are extremely high which becomes another obstacle for young adults. Affordable housing is necessary for young adults because there are multiple factors going against us: the average student debt in Ontario is $28,000 for graduates from a bachelor’s degree in 2015, and we face many other when first living independently. The income needed to live comfortably in Toronto is $130k, while the average income in Toronto is $90k. From ages 20-24 the average income with a university degree at bachelor level or above is $19,114. Young adults simply do not have the income needed to compete with older and/or wealthier adults. Being able to live on your own is an important social step in life but there are other reasons for needing a living residence. Some young adults depart from their family houses due to individual reasons such as, being in a large family and needing more space, or simply just needing independence. Regardless of the reason, if there is not affordable housing available it affects numerous people. Government officials need to do many things to fix this existing problem, such as but not limited to:

-Build more affordable housing;

-Control rent prices and monitor loopholes more effectively so owners or landlords cannot arbitrarily set or change prices later on;

-Offer incentives for owners to rent to young adults;

-Build large scale community housing projects.

Below are links that provide more information on affordable housing:

• Toronto's Unaffordable Housing Is Among The World's Worst: 2021 Report - Narcity
• Affordability gap widens | Toronto Sun
• 6 Things Canada Could (But Won’t) Do To Solve The Housing Crisis | HuffPost Canada Business (huffingtonpost.ca)
• Studies suggest Toronto’s rental shortage will skyrocket in coming years - The Globe and Mail