A St. John’s man on the brink of homelessness is facing the possibility of losing his son due to a lack of housing options for people with kids.
Tristen Keats, who turns 27 this month, lives with his mother and his three-year-old son, Jacoby, in a small basement apartment that is advertised for only one person.
“Here we are now with people living on the side of the street in tents,” Keats said. “Me and him are just about there now, right? We got a couple months.”
They are running out of time, as his mother’s landlord has given them a few months to find a new place.
He and his son are among the many people caught in the housing crisis that is sweeping across the country and hitting Newfoundland and Labrador. Social housing and emergency shelters are in high demand, leading many people to take the only home they’ve known for months — a tent — and station themselves in public spaces around St. John’s.
And if facing homelessness is tough, when children are involved, the struggle can be worse.
Here’s a though - want to be a landlord? Only allowed for purpose built rentals. No more buying up condos and SFH to rent them out.
Don’t even start with the “But they are providing a service by adding to rental stock!” or “But there are good landlords!” or even the “What about the people who want to rent?!”. Great, build a triplex or more, otherwise let people who actually want to live in a home with the stability it provides and not pad your fucking retirement.
Once we have a housing surplus we can talk about changing things again.