'I woke up at 3 a.m. to gunshots': Safe and affordable housing hard to find, renter says

Hayley Toews moved to Winnipeg from Winkler four years ago to attend school.

The 25-year-old knew it wouldn't be easy finding an affordable apartment while working part time and going to school full time.

What she wasn't expecting, however, was deep fear for her safety and security as a renter in Winnipeg.

"I woke up to gunshots outside my window," said Toews, who lives in a $725-a-month studio apartment in Osborne Village.

That incident, which happened in 2021, isn't the only one Toews has faced as a renter.

"I've definitely had safety concerns at all of the apartments I've lived in," she said.

Today Toews, who worked for a time in health care, spends more than 30 per cent of her income on housing and struggles with paying bills.

Toews shares several personal storiesin Part 2 ofUnsafe Spaces,a new three-part video series for CBC Manitoba Creator Network.

The seriesby filmmakers Sidney Phommarath and Melvin Daligdigexplores housingchallenges faced by threeyoung Winnipeggersand the advice they have for their peers. Watch Tamika Krush reveal how being queer and black led to housing discrimination inPart 1of Unsafe Spaces.

This film is part of Unlocked: Housing stories by young Canadians, a national storytelling series by the CBC Creator Network. These personal stories, produced primarily by gen Zers and millennials, reveal the challenges young Canadians face finding affordable housing, their creative solutions and their hopes for the future. You can read more storieshere.