Frequently Asked Questions

St. Clare’s is a private not-for-profit landlord. Approximately 80% of our tenants receive a rent subsidy and pay a rent-geared-to-their-income. 100% of our units are rent controlled.

There are two ways to gain access to a St. Clare’s unit.

1. Through Partner Agencies
   • Most of our units are only accessible through our Partner Agencies. Each agency has a set number of units throughout our portfolio that they are responsible for filling and supporting. Those Partner Agencies then choose who to house in those units.
   • If the person looking for housing is already receiving service from one of our Partner Agencies, they can talk to their support worker at that agency about applying to St. Clare’s housing specifically.
   • If the person is not receiving service from a Partner Agency, this path (path 1) is not an option.
2. Through our Average Market Rent (AMR) waitlist
   • If one can afford AMR rates, one can also join the AMR unit waitlist for our buildings that have AMR units. Those units are at 5 Hahn Place, 157 + 165 Jameson Avenue, and 180 Sudbury Street.
   • For these units, the entire household’s income cannot exceed 4 times the rent. Minimum income requirements are determined once the prospective tenant has completed the AMR waitlist application.
   • To begin that process, please email 180sudbury@stclares.ca.

To access emergency shelter in Toronto, call Central Intake at 416-338-4766. St. Clare’s does not provide emergency housing or shelter.

Please note that the Toronto subsidized housing waitlists ranging from Rent-Geared-to-Income to alternative housing are kept by third parties not controlled by St. Clare’s. St. Clare’s only controls St. Clare’s units.

For support with a Rent-Geared-to-Income subsidy application, click here. For individual mental health and addiction support services, including supportive housing, please call The Access Point at 416-640-1934. For other help with housing, one can contact a Housing Help Centre.

Yes. All tenants living in our buildings sign a lease and pay rent.

Tenants receiving government assistance pay the shelter component of their monthly benefit. Subsidized tenants with other types of income pay approximately 30% of their gross income for rent. Other tenants pay an affordable rent as defined by the federal or municipal government.

The federal and municipal governments have a variety of definitions of affordable housing. Some are based on CMHC’s Average Market Rent (AMR), some use income bands. Different definitions apply to different buildings.

The apartments are the same, but a tenant who is subsidized has their rent reduced to make the apartment affordable for them according to their income. Unsubsidized tenants pay the set affordable rent regardless of their income. If you apply for affordable housing/rent, the combined income of all occupants cannot exceed four times the rent.

No. In some of our buildings only half the tenants are subsidized, the remaining tenants pay affordable rent.

No, there is no time limit on tenancies. St. Clare’s apartments are subject to the Residential Tenancies Act.

St. Clare’s is the landlord. All St. Clare’s’ tenants sign a lease. The relationship is that of a landlord and a tenant.

No. St. Clare’s rents self-contained apartments which are subject to the Residential Tenancies Act. Many of our tenants receive support from one of our Partner Agencies, but St. Clare’s does not provide the support.

St. Clare’s is the Property Manager of its buildings and directly hires the building staff. Our Property Management teams provide day-to-day care for each building and our centralized Asset Management team stewards the overall portfolio to ensure well maintained housing stock for future generations.

Some of St. Clare’s buildings are accessible to people using mobility devices by way of elevators and ramps. Only 180 Sudbury Street and 877 Yonge Street have units that are specifically designed for people who use mobility devices (like manual or power wheelchairs).

Until everyone has access to a safe and appropriate place to live, St. Clare’s will look for opportunities to develop and preserve more affordable housing. See our Next Projects page for more details.

It is a long process. It can take 3-4 years from when a site and funding is secured until tenants move in.

Yes, St. Clare’s works in partnership with developers on large affordable housing projects.

St. Clare’s does not rely on government funding for its operations. We do receive capital grants from all three levels of government to assist the development of new affordable housing projects. The capital grants St. Clare’s receives are also available to private developers.

We consider St. Clare’s to be social housing because we have a social mission: we develop and manage affordable housing for tenants who live independently. St. Clare’s is able to provide rent subsidies to tenants who qualify based on financial need and the availability of funds. St. Clare’s works with a number of Partner Agencies which both refer and provide ongoing support services to tenants.

As it is defined by the Housing Services Act, St. Clare’s is not social housing. Within this Act, St. Clare’s is defined as alternative affordable housing. See this housing continuum for more details.

No. St. Clare’s Housing is not affiliated with any faith, spirituality, or religion.

Yes. Once a year St. Clare’s’ Board of Directors hosts their Gear Up for Housing bike ride. More details and updates can be found here.

We accept donations through CanadaHelps.

All Partner Agencies are required to do the following:

• Provide cradle to grave support for any tenant you refer into your allocated units. As long as the tenant is in your unit, you must support them.
• Engage in shared-risk partnership, meaning that the Partner Agency covers vacancy loss and any costs that their referred clients cannot or will not pay.
• Capacity-build with tenants. St. Clare’s tenant capacity-building model means that Partner Agencies are moving the tenant towards self sufficiency. This requires case management and long-term support work with the tenant. Low support or only providing crisis management is not acceptable.
• Attend monthly partnership meetings. These meetings are mandatory for all Partner Agencies to attend so that all agencies express the needs of the clients they serve at every meeting.

Expectations of Partner Agencies are high. Units are allocated at St. Clare’s’ discretion, based on Partner Agencies’ ability to provide strong case management and housing support. If your organization can meet these requirements, please email info@stclares.ca.

Unfortunately people cannot apply to live at St. Clare’s after they have lived at one of our buildings before and left. Due to the homelessness crisis, St. Clare’s aims to give as many people as possible the chance to succeed in the St. Clare’s housing model.