Hamilton’s tenant advocacy group has presented the results of an eye-opening survey to the city’s rental housing subcommittee.
Since June, ACORN has been surveying tenants about their health and safety concerns.
Chair Mike Wood says the results show almost 48 per cent of respondents had bedbugs in their apartments within the past two years, and almost 44 percent reported a lack of heating in the winter.
WATCH: Avenue Living Apartments get poor reviews after reports of bedbug infestation
He adds that 61 per cent moved into units needing repairs and 73 per cent have seen cockroaches in their apartments.
ACORN is calling for a RentSafe program through which private rental properties would be inspected each year and results publicly displayed, similar to food safety inspections.
Wood stresses that many tenants simply won’t come forward on their own with complaints because they fear reprisal and have nowhere else to go.