CORPIQ stands up for Valérie Plante and all plex owners who want to renovate
CORPIQ is of the opinion that Valérie Plante did what all owners of rental properties should be entitled to do, that is, renovate their dwellings by putting all their heart and with the best intentions in the world to provide comfortable and well-maintained dwellings to their tenants. According to CORPIQ's legal advisors, insofar as the work was not structural and did not involve electricity or plumbing, Valérie Plante was in full compliance with the regulations applicable by the CCQ.
According to CORPIQ, which has been defending landlords for years on this issue, volunteer work such as that performed by Valérie Plante and her husband is not only legal but should be encouraged if Quebec wishes to maintain a quality and affordable housing stock.
Quebec's legislation is not clear, but is above all unfair, which is the result of a lack of political courage in the face of the construction union lobbies. How can we accept that owners of buildings with six (6) units or less cannot do the work themselves on the buildings they own and live in? Can we imagine legislation that prevents us from maintaining our cars?
The legislation is unnecessarily complex and generates a lot of confusion and conflicting interpretations. For example, the maintenance and repair of a fourplex by its owner is allowed, but not that of a quintuplex. Furthermore, the same work becomes illegal if the owner decides to move into the house next door while continuing to take care of his plex. Basically, without being an occupant of the building, any work done by the landlord, even the application of paint, would be illegal in the eyes of the CCQ. In fact, according to the CCQ, landlords would have to pay $80.50 per hour for a painter, $82.44 per hour for a drywaller... Rates that don't hold up in a market where a tenant who ultimately pays the costs.
In any case, according to CORPIQ, employees holding CCQ competency cards are not interested in small residential jobs.
This is why CORPIQ has been demanding for several years that all plexes be excluded from the control of the CCQ, so that it can concentrate on the real issues, i.e., the supervision of new residential, commercial, industrial, or civil engineering constructions.
