Unauthorized Secondary Suites: An Analysis of the Renter’s Perspective

Abstract

Unauthorized (or illegal) secondary suites are a controversial form of housing that are considered to be the result of increasingly unaffordable housing coupled with lenient regulatory enforcement. In contrast to the typical political regulatory and community concerns that are often the emphasis of discussion, this study examines the place of the renter within this complex issue. Qualitative interviews were conducted with people who are living, or who have lived, in what they believe is an unauthorized secondary suite. A major finding was that suites were considered transitional rather than permanent housing, and that they were utilized in response to transitions in the life course. The location of suites in the basement of detached homes, rather than suites’ unauthorized nature, was associated with stigma. The study also found that suites themselves were often spaces in transition, and that risk was related to the makeshift nature of the unauthorized suites.