It’s no secret that articling salaries in Halifax are not favorable to the city’s ever-increasing rents. According to the Government of Canada website, the articling salary for Halifax is $52,918, while Toronto is $80,004 and Vancouver is $69,708. Private firms are generally no better. Articling salaries in the $75k to $85k range seem to be the minority in the Atlantic provinces – as are decently priced apartments. Articling in Atlantic Canada should not sentence you to being a forever roommate. You have the degree, you have the job, and you'd think you could have the apartment, too.
Availability, quality, and location of housing
Though I am not an articling student, even with all the financial aid fixings, I have been priced out of the Halifax Peninsula. When the landlords of my previous apartment decided to end my lease and ask for more money from a new tenant, my options were to become a roommate, live with mice (again), or pay over $2000 per month before utilities and parking. The horrific prices and quality of my options were coupled with an overall lack of availability. I am not alone in this. More and more buildings are going up in communities like Larry Uteck, Clayton Park, Fairview, Hammonds Plains, and West Bedford – more and more people are being forced out of the city into these communities. The unreliable public transit and lack of car share options make owning a car a near necessity. This is both bad for the environment and for the soul.
Living in Bedford is expensive as well, but you can save a few hundred dollars compared to the same apartment closer to downtown. There are lots of places in Canada and the world like this, but understand this was not so drastic just five years ago. The peninsula has always been more expensive than surrounding areas, with some exceptions in the North End. In 2019, my first apartment in the South End was $1270 and was considered expensive for a one-bedroom apartment at the time. However, in my opinion, the difference between $1270 in the South End and $1000 in Bedford feels a lot different than $2300 in the South End and $1900 in Bedford.
A landlord problem
Bluntly, Halifax has a landlord problem. At Law Amendments on the Bill to Amend the Residential Tenancies Act, Mark Culligan from Dal Legal Aid emphasized the need for a compliance mechanism. He says there is no disincentive for landlords to continue breaching the Act. He gives examples of landlords – both large and small – being routinely unlawful. Landlords withhold security deposits, charge application fees, discriminate against international applicants, and much more. There is a significant power imbalance between landlords and tenants – especially in terms of those tenants being able to advocate for themselves. An example of this is the change in when a landlord can begin the eviction process. Before this change, the period that a tenant had to pay rent before the landlord could begin the eviction process was 15 business days. Soon, it will be three calendar days. This is barely, or even not at all, enough time to process a bank order.
It’s common knowledge at this point that population growth in Halifax, or any growing city, pushes out the locals. The landlord problem is not unique to Halifax or Atlantic Canada. If you plan to stay in Halifax, for or after law school, it could happen to you too.
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