The Ontario government is making important and positive changes to one of its housing supplement programs for low-income renters, according Laurie Monsebraaten in The Toronto Star. Previously, the province’s ROOF (rent supplement) program was only available to families with children and only offered a maximum of $100 monthly – restrictions that drew criticisms from many housing experts. Research by the Wellesley Institute and others shows that the affordability gap for renter households is much bigger than $100. The ROOF program was poorly designed, according to the Ontario Auditor General, which meant that tens of millions of federal housing dollars allocated to the program were not being spent. The Star reports that the new flexibility from the province will allow municipalities to tailor the rent supplements to more effectively meet local needs.