Critical shortage of affordable housing in Nipissing, group says

A non-profit group that helps the homeless and people at risk of homelessness is sounding the alarm over the lack of housing options in the District of Nipissing.

A case in point is a North Bay woman who is desperately looking for a home after her landlord sold the property where she was living.

Time is running out for Debbie Bellemare, who has only two months left to find a new place. Her last day in her current home is Sept. 30.

"I'm terrified because I don't want to be homeless,” said Bellemare.

“I'm sure there are lots of other people in the same boat as me.”

Finding a new place to live has not been easy, she said. Everything available so far is out of her price range.

Many families are in a similar situation, says Low Income People Involvement of Nipissing (LIPI), a group dedicated to fighting homelessness.

In recent months, many landlords sold the homes they converted into apartments because the market is booming.

"So we've lost a substantial amount of units in this latest crazy housing mode,” said LIPI executive director Lana Mitchell.

“It's absolutely ridiculous and it's extremely stressful on anyone dealing with trying to maintain housing or acquire housing."

LIPI is currently seeing just under 1,000 families on a waitlist for geared-to-income rental housing.

The group estimates that around 1,600 families in the district are struggling to find a suitable place to live, a figure that doesn’t include people in crisis.

Mitchell points to two fires in West Nipissing in the past 10 days that displaced families. She said affordable housing options are needed as soon as possible to save people from ending up on the streets.

"We're behind the eight-ball and it's not because people aren't trying or working hard,” she said.

“It's because it's gone crazy in so many different directions."

As for Bellemare, she worries she will have to either go to a shelter or live in a tent.

"I don't know what else I can do," she said.