Community resource centre

Know your rights. Find the right door.

Trusted starting points for Black Canadians and anyone facing barriers in housing, real estate, mortgages, credit or community life—with Ontario-first legal pathways and Canada-wide learning tools.

Find help now Document what happened

If you are in immediate danger, call 911.For local housing, food, legal, mental-health and social-service referrals in Ontario, call or text 211. ACRES provides education and referrals—not legal, financial, mortgage or real-estate advice.

Start here

Housing discrimination and legal help

Race, colour, ancestry, place of origin and ethnic origin are protected grounds under Ontario’s Human Rights Code. These organizations can explain rights, intake a matter or direct you to the correct process.

Black-focused legal support

Black Legal Action Centre

Free legal services for eligible Black Ontarians, including housing, human rights, employment and government-support matters.

Visit BLAC →

Free human-rights help

Human Rights Legal Support Centre

Free legal advice and support for people who may have experienced discrimination under Ontario’s Human Rights Code.

Start with HRLSC →

Know the law

Ontario Human Rights Commission

Plain-language guidance on discrimination in buying, selling, renting, eviction, tenant screening and housing services.

Read your housing rights →

File a human-rights claim

Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario

Application process, forms and deadlines. Most applications must be filed within one year of the last alleged incident.

Review the HRTO process →

Tenant and landlord process

Landlord and Tenant Board

Official forms, filing information and the Navigate Tribunals Ontario guided pathway for rental disputes.

Use LTB resources →

Local legal clinic

Legal Aid Ontario

Find a community legal clinic for information, advice or representation. Eligibility and services vary by clinic.

Find a legal clinic →

Real estate and money

Check credentials. Escalate concerns.

Start with the regulated organization or professional. Keep records, ask for a written response and use the regulator’s process when the issue remains unresolved.

Real estate professionals

Real Estate Council of Ontario

Check whether an Ontario agent or brokerage is in good standing, learn what consumers should expect and access complaint information.

Visit RECO →

Mortgage professionals

Financial Services Regulatory Authority

Verify a mortgage agent, broker or brokerage and learn the complaint path for Ontario mortgage-brokering concerns.

Use FSRA’s mortgage hub →

Homebuying education

CMHC Homebuying Step by Step

A Canada-wide guide, workbook and checklist covering readiness, financing, the purchase process and homeownership planning.

Open the CMHC guide →

Community navigation

211 Ontario

Phone, text and online navigation to local housing, food, health, legal and social supports across Ontario.

Search or contact 211 →

Bank complaint pathway

Financial Consumer Agency of Canada

Official steps for complaints about banks and other federally regulated financial institutions, including escalation to the external complaints body. FCAC oversees the process but does not resolve individual disputes.

Use the federal complaint guide →

Federal discrimination complaints

Canadian Human Rights Commission

A screening and complaint route when alleged discrimination involves a federally regulated organization, which can include banks. The Commission helps determine whether the federal process applies.

Check the CHRC complaint route →

Ontario credit unions

FSRA credit-union support

Verify an Ontario credit union, review deposit-insurance information and find the complaint pathway. Start with the credit union’s own complaints officer before escalating.

Open FSRA’s credit-union hub →

Financial education

Financial Consumer Agency of Canada

Independent federal information about mortgages, credit reports, debt, fraud prevention and financial literacy.

Browse FCAC resources →

National discrimination data

Statistics Canada evidence

Published 2023 and 2024 federal data documents unequal owner-occupied dwelling rates and disproportionate reports of discrimination while seeking housing.

Read the Statistics Canada release →

Before you escalate

Build a clear record

Good documentation helps a legal clinic, regulator or tribunal understand what happened. Do this safely and lawfully.

Write the timeline

Record dates, times, locations, names, what was said or done, and who witnessed it while details are fresh.

Preserve documents

Keep listings, applications, emails, texts, screenshots, receipts, agreements and written decisions in their original form.

Ask for it in writing

Request the reason for a decision and the organization’s complaint process. Stay factual and save the response.

Get advice early

Deadlines can be short. Contact the appropriate legal service or regulator before assuming which process applies.

Do not secretly record private conversations without first understanding the law that applies to you. Do not alter evidence. ACRES does not assess cases or guarantee outcomes.

Why this work exists

History is not background. It shaped the market.

ACRES connects practical help today with the documented history of displacement and the measurable barriers that remain.

75%

CMHC-funded “urban renewal” helped raze Hogan’s Alley.

CMHC states that, under the National Housing Act, it funded up to 75% of the program that paved the way for Vancouver to destroy the historic Black community.

CMHC source →

45.2%

Black Canadians lived in owner-occupied homes at a much lower rate.

Statistics Canada reported 45.2% for the Black population in 2021, compared with 71.9% for the total population.

Statistics Canada source →

13%

Black people reported discrimination while seeking housing at more than twice the comparison rates.

In six pooled Canadian Social Survey waves collected from 2021 to 2024, respondents reported experiences in the five years before each survey. The housing-seeking rate was 13% for Black people and 6% for both comparison groups.

Statistics Canada source →

Help ACRES keep this directory useful.

Know a credible Black-led housing, legal, financial-literacy or community organization we should review? Send the organization’s official link and the community it serves.

Suggest a resource