A rent hike will hit workers living in Yukon government housing across communities starting in October, adding up to $13 on top of their rent each month.

That’s thanks to changes YG is making to its Employee Housing Policy, rules that date back 25 years.

The changes apply to housing “in rural Yukon communities for Yukon government employees where there is little or no rental market available,” Sarah Murray of the Yukon Housing Corp. (YHC) said Thursday afternoon.

An estimated 170 units will be impacted, she told the Star.

The number of individuals within those units can vary among singles, couples and a family – much like the options which may see two-bedroom or five-bedroom units.

Currently, Murray explained the average monthly rent a tenant pays ranges between $450 and $600, depending on the community and type of unit.

An approved increase of 2.2 per cent annually on top of that $600 would make the monthly rent $613. In short, that would mean workers would have to fork over $156 more each year for their housing.

The policy, available online, also notes that the YHC will set and charge market-based rents for the units.

“We know there’s a limited amount of government-owned housing in communities,” Murray said.

“We want to make that available for people who are coming in new to communities who may not have connections, who really need the support to find housing.”

Pauline Frost, the minister responsible for the YHC, noted in a release the rules “will help ensure that government-owned housing is not in competition with private rental housing.”

That private rental housing market is, by the YHC’s own admission, varied throughout communities like Watson Lake, Dawson City and Haines Junction.

“What’s happening right now, if you’re paying between $450 and $600 a month in rent, that is less than the private market,” Murray said, meaning going with the YHC would be cheaper.

“What our rent increase is designed to do is make sure that YG-owned housing is not in competition ... so underselling the private market,” she added.

Rent hikes aren’t the only changes coming forward; YG is also putting a cap on how long workers can stay in the unit, at three years.

Murray said there are about 900 YG workers living in communities with 170 housing units available.

“As you can see, there are many employees living outside of Yukon government housing,” she said. That also led to the government to making a priority list.

“This is kind of an acknowledgment that there are lots of YG workers living in communities, not all can have government housing.”

Right now, tenants tend to sign one-year leases.

Under the new rules, they will be given the boot from their unit once they hit three years, unless an application for an extension is granted.

“In the case of an employee living in government housing and that housing is required after three years, an application can be made to the Public Service Commission and it can be granted (further),” Murray added.

As for what exactly “required” meant, she confirmed there were no plans nor forecasts at this stage that those units would be needed for something other than staff housing.

“We do know that it could be really detrimental to have an employee leave after three years if they can’t find housing.”

Murray noted these changes “work in tandem” with other initiatives offered by the corporation.

Meanwhile, a YG release also noted that changes create a new way to assign housing units – this will now be on a first-come, first-served basis and take priority professions into account.

The first tier of priority professions include nurses, community counsellors, paramedics, community addictions workers, regional social workers, nurses and teachers.

The second priority group includes people like healthy families workers, natural resources officers, mining recorders, conservation officers, water and waste water supervisors and airport supervisors.

Joining this second list are carpenters, plumbers and heavy equipment operators.

“Only when there is no demand for employee housing from an employee in a Priority 1 position will an employee in a Priority 2 position be considered,” the policy adds.

A tenant will not be asked to leave their unit “for the sole purpose of providing housing to another employee in need of housing whose position is categorized in Annex 1 as having a higher priority housing rating,” it continues.

“We needed to update it to address operational challenges,” Murray said of the 25-year-old rules. Those include the allocation system by which houses are assigned, the rent increase and tenancy durations.

Ultimately, it was an inevitable reality that rents would have to rise as demand rose and the territory continues to grow, she added.

In June, tenants will be given their first notice for October’s rent increases.