Canada Calling: 25 international students living in 1 Brampton basement raided

But this trend has shot up recently with interest rates climbing, forcing people to rent out living space to offset increases in their mortgage payments.

Coupled with the fact that more and more newcomers and international students have been arriving in Brampton, many have found it quite lucrative to house as many tenants as possible. (Representative Photo/File)

“How much land does a man need?” Brampton recently turned this Tolstoyan philosophical question on its head, prompting startled onlookers to wonder, rather prosaically: How little square footage does a person need to survive in Canada? What precipitated this was an inspection by Brampton bylaw officers at a house late last month that revealed – no typo – 25 international students living in the basement on rent. The average size of a detached house in Ontario is 1520 square feet. While we don’t know the size of the house in question, even if it were a sizable residence, it’s fair to assume the basement wouldn’t have been more than 1000 square feet. That leaves each of those students with 40 square feet – barely enough to fit a queen-size mattress.

During a council meeting on January 31, Brampton’s Mayor raised the issue of illegal rental units in the city, stating that about 100,000 people – many of them international students – were living in such units. He promised to crack down on such landlords – calling them “slumlords” – who were evading taxes while forcing renters to live in “fire traps.” Illegal rental suites have always existed in Brampton because it’s cheaper and faster to erect drywalls in the basement without prior approval than paying for permits and making proper accommodations compliant with safety regulations.

But this trend has shot up recently with interest rates climbing, forcing people to rent out living space to offset increases in their mortgage payments. Coupled with the fact that more and more newcomers and international students have been arriving in Brampton, many have found it quite lucrative to house as many tenants as possible. Why give a two-room basement to a family of four for 2000 dollars when having, let’s say, 8 students could potentially fetch twice as much? With 25, the opportunities could seem infinite. Unfortunately, Brampton’s first effort to rein in those alleged slumlords ended in failure when landlords protested a city council decision to make it mandatory for rental unit owners to register with the city. Under pressure, the city council temporarily paused. After this new discovery of two dozen students living in cramped conditions, Mayor Brown plans to reintroduce it again.

Second arrest in Indian pizza delivery driver’s murder

Police have arrested a second man in connection with the death of Gurvinder Nath, 24, a student-turned pizza delivery driver last year in Mississauga. Nath, who hailed from SBS Nagar in Punjab, was making a food delivery when he was confronted by suspects who tried to take his vehicle at around 2:10 a.m. on July 9, 2023. A physical altercation took place, and the suspects allegedly fled in Nath’s vehicle, leaving Nath critically hurt at the side of the road. Nath, 24, succumbed to his injuries on July 14, 2023. The day his body was to arrive in India, his distraught mother died by suicide. On Nov. 22, 2023, police arrested a young person in connection with the murder.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram

Tags:
Canada