Archive for the ‘Ontario tenants’ Category

Invitation to Comment on Regulatory Registry Postings Related to Market Rental Housing

Thursday, May 18th, 2023

 

Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing – Market Housing Division

777 Bay Street, 14th Floor
Toronto, ON M7A 2J3
Tél: 416 585-6872

SUBJECT: Mavis Fung, Director, Market Housing Division

Invitation to Comment on Regulatory Registry Postings Related to Market Rental Housing

On April 6, 2023, the Ontario government introduced Bill 97, the Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, which is the latest in a series of steps the government is taking to increase housing supply and help more Ontarians find a home they can afford.

The proposals in the Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act would, if passed, help to ensure that the government reaches its goal of building 1.5 million homes by 2031.

The government is consulting municipalities, stakeholders and the public on the
proposed initiatives, including those related to market rental housing.

To that end, the ministry would like to invite you to submit your feedback on the following initiatives currently posted on Ontario’s Regulatory Registry.

Please feel free to forward this invitation on to other interested members and stakeholders.

Regulatory proposals available for comment from April 6 to May 21, 2023:

1. Seeking Feedback on Future Regulations To Create A Balanced Framework Around Municipal Rental Replacement By-Laws (Proposal # 23-MMAH005)

2. Seeking Feedback on Proposed Changes to Help Protect Tenants from Bad Faith Renovation Evictions (Proposal # 23-MMAH00)

3. Seeking Feedback on Timeframe for Occupancy for Landlord’s Own Use Evictions (Proposal # 23-MMAH007)
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These and other related consultations can be found through the Environmental Registry of Ontario and the Ontario Regulatory Registry.
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If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the ministry.
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Questions regarding the postings can be sent to Jennifer Chan, Manager, Residential and
Commercial Tenancies Unit, at jennifer.chan@ontario.ca.
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We look forward to hearing your input.
;;
Sincerely,
Mavis Fung

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How Ontario Tenants Can Break Your Lease in 2021

Monday, March 1st, 2021

Get Tenant Tips And Tricks From Experienced Tenants On How “Things Really Work” And How You Can Protect Yourself in 2021!

How Ontario Tenants Can Easily & Legally Break Your Lease In 2021!

Because of the hard work of Tenants we finally have some new changes that are fair and promote justice for Tenants.

All the law-abiding landlords out there will support this post because it’s just explaining the rules and laws to help tenants, just as landlords help each other.

Landlords Can’t Lock Tenants In To Fixed Term Leases

In April 2017 we saw the provincial government finally listen to our concerns and they created the Rental Fairness Act which makes changes to the Residential Tenancies Act.

Now landlords can’t collect arrears for rent due once Tenants receive a “Termination Notice”.

You can see in the Residential Tenancies Act, Section 37, that states that once the landlord gives the Tenant a notice of termination, the tenancy ends of that date of termination the landlord put in the notice.

With the Rental Fairness Act we finally get some real clear facts on once the Tenant gets the termination date, you break your lease:

134(1.1) No landlord shall, directly or indirectly, with respect to any rental unit, collect or require or attempt to collect or require from a former tenant of the rental unit any amount of money purporting to be rent in respect of,

(a) any period after the tenancy has terminated and the tenant has vacated the rental unit; or

(b) any period after the tenant’s interest in the tenancy has terminated and the tenant has vacated the rental unit. 2017, c. 13, s. 24 (2).

What Does This Mean For Tenants? It Means You Can Get Out of Fixed Term Leases

The best thing that all Ontario Tenants should know is this gives you an easy way to break your fixed term lease.

And landlords cannot go after you in small claims court or the Landlord and Tenant Board for breaking the lease, because it’s landlords who told YOU TO MOVE.

For example you might want to move because the landlord is a jerk, or the neighbours are noisy or smoking, or maybe you found a nicer or cheaper place.  You are no longer “locked in” like a slave.

How Can Tenants Break a Fixed Term Lease Under the New Rules?

Remember, if the landlord gives you a notice with a “termination date” of “do this or the tenancy ends” you can just….don’t do what they say…and break the lease! 

“Pay By This Date Or Move Out”…Ok, just move out and it’s terminated!

What’s the Best Way For Tenants To Break A Fixed Term Lease?

There are lots of ways now! Sure it’s a little bit sneaky but Tenants have to do what have to do to survive in this unfair situation.

(1) Don’t Pay Rent and Get the N4

Probably the best way to break the lease is just don’t pay rent. The landlord will give you an N4 ‘Pay Up or Be Evicted Notice’ with a termination date. The termination date will usually be 15 days after they give the notice. Since they are the ones who want to terminate the lease you just don’t pay and agree with them…and there is nothing the landlord can do! Again, here’s how it works.

Step 1 – Rent is Due

Step 2 – You Don’t Pay Rent

Step 3 – The landlord wants your money so will give you N4 Notice to End The Tenancy For Non-Payment of Rent

Step 4 – The N4 says: “Pay this amount by…. (This is called the termination date) or Move Out By the Termination Date

Step 5 – Just move out at the termination date and the lease is broken and you are home free!!

(2) Make Some Disturbances and Get the N5

Make lots of noise and the landlord will probably give you an N5 Notice to End Your Tenancy For Interfering With Others, Damage or Overcrowding. It will have a termination date and then you get out of it. I am giving you this notice because I want to end your tenancy. I want you to move out of your rental unit by the following termination date _____

Step 1:  Make Noise, Damages or Overcrowd the rental

Step 2: The Landlord Will Give You an N5

Step 3. The N5 Will Have A Termination Date

Step 4 On or Before the Termination Date……….just move out by the termination date and you are home free!!

Try not to bother other Tenants so much, but noise, smoking or these types of things will lead to an N5 and then you can leave free and in peace for a better, cheaper apartment.

Try to talk with other tenants so if you are making noise or going to smoke or flood the place, they can complain quickly to the landlord get get the N5 process going fast without really creating any trouble for your fellow Tenants.

Being Able To Break Fixed Term Leases Easily Is the First Step in Creating a Better Rental Industry – Especially When It’s The Landlord Telling You To “Obey or Get Out”…So Get Out!

Things are still really unfair. But I want to make sure Tenants are at least aware how the new rules make it okay to break fixed term leases. I’ll write more later on and hope other Tenants and fair-minded landlords can make positive contributions here.

It’s Time For Real Fairness For Ontario Tenants

Let’s work together and finally create a fair playing field for Ontario Tenants. I know many of you will be amazed at my first contribution and there will be many more to come because it’s time for FAIRNESS.

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Posted in breaking a lease agreement, Breaking fixed term lease, breaking lease, Good Tenant Tips, Landlord and Tenant News, Ontario tenants, Rental Fairness Act, Tenant tips | Comments Off on How Ontario Tenants Can Break Your Lease in 2021

“Ontario Tenants Will Be Able To Smoke Marijuana And There’s Nothing Landlords Can Do About It”

Thursday, March 1st, 2018

Ontario tenants speak out

Tenants Speak Out and Share Their Concerns and Opinions on the Rental Industry

marijuana tenants ontario 1

“Ontario Tenants Will Soon Be Able To Smoke Marijuana In Their Homes And There’s Nothing Landlords Can Do About It”

The uproar from landlords and their friends in the media regarding marijuana is both frustrating and frightening. While landlords are allowed to frame the debate regarding the non-existent “tenants smoking marijuana issue” there has been a great racist and class discriminating wall preventing tenants from sharing our opinions and experiences.

Hey Media! I am aware landlords spend millions of dollars in advertising dollars to the media, but couldn’t you even give tenants a few iotas of your precious ad space, I mean news stories.

It’s clear the landlords in Ontario, both big and small, have spent a lot of time and money working together to create a plan to try to prevent tenants in Ontario from using marijuana in our homes.

I can just imagine all the secretive meetings between all the landlord lobby groups at the Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto to prepare a “united front” against tenants. While sipping $100 bottle Bordeaux at the Cafe Boulud they talk about how tough life is being a landlord. 

And “oh how dare the working class enjoy smoking cannabis now that it will soon be legal” they sigh while downing dishes the average worker could never afford!

It seems they only want wealthy homeowners to be allowed to enjoy a toke of a nice strain due to their wealth and privileged position in society.

Tenants Have the Human Rights To Do The Same Things in Their Homes That Homeowners Do In Theirs

Homeowners need to realize that when you rent to a tenant in Ontario it is no longer “your property”. It is now the tenant’s home. And just like you tenants can do what they want in their home. 

So just like you in your home, tenants in our home can do things like:

-play scrabble

-watch Netflix

-cook really tasty popcorn to eat while we watch our favorite shows

-play with our pets

-have passionate sex with whomever we choose to do so

-pray to our gods and goddesses without discrimination or fear

-smoke marijuana and grow our own plants with sweet as hell strains that the LCBO chains will never match

It almost seems landlords think a tenant should pay the rent and yet never even live in the property.

ontario tenants flight attendant hot

Ideal Tenant – Never Home!

I often think the ideal tenant for Ontario landlords is a flight attendant.

He rents from you and is never home as he flies across the country earning a wage to pay rent.  Oh and if he ever brings his boyfriend back the landlord will be livid and preparing evictions notices.

Or suddenly things don’t get fixed.  Or there are constant needless repairs. Constant harassment to move. (Probably because both Mr. and Mrs. Landlord are jealous of what they are missing). Unless the hook up is short and the tenant leaves again and seems to just disappear while the rent money keeps flowing in like a river.

Too many landlords view their rental apartments as only a money making machine and not a place where real people live.  I will soon submit my next article on rentals with no parking, ha ha!

The Whole “Oh Marijuana Smells So Bad” is a Straw man Argument and Not Logical   

Does curry smell bad? No, I get hungry when I smell it because it was part of my family’s regular food supply. Does marijuana smell bad? For me, no not at all. I can barely even smell it and if I do notice it I’m reminded of my family garden as a child.

Smell is subjective and based on the life experiences of the person smelling. Some people don’t like the small of curry and “Indian food” or garlic and “Chinese food”.

It’s like asking 10 people “What do you think of this perfume?” Some will love it, some will like it, some will dislike it and some will hate it.  Everyone has a different opinion and it’s the same with the smell of marijuana (if there really is a smell, because I usually don’t even notice it).

What would I like to ban? 

Fat slobs who over cook animal flesh.  I don’t like the smell of burnt meat. It reminds me of how much the cow must have screamed while being slaughtered. 

Ontario tenants marijuana tv dinner

Burn animal flesh reminds me of the pain the animal felt. Let’s make tortured meat smell a way to evict people

But since meat is typical “landlord” food there’s nothing I can do about it. Stop eating meat! And notice they advertise this as “hungry-MAN.”  That says a lot. Another reason to never rent from male landlords.

Tenants Can Smoke Marijuana And There Is Nothing Landlords Can Do About It

I have felt so threatened and angry over the past few weeks. Maybe I need to give up social media. 

The good news is tenants can smoke marijuana and grow plants in our homes and there is nothing landlords can do about it. It is reassuring to know that tenants have the same rights as homeowners and that means tenants are protected from landlords who only want to enjoy the benefits of marijuana to themselves and their land owning class.

And don’t think any “no smoking clause” will work for you because the tenant can just say she wasn’t smoking and it was the smell on her clothes or something. You won’t get your eviction!

I want to create some balance here so landlords repeat after me:

What the Tenants Are Doing In Their Homes Is Our Business And If We Are Smoking Marijuana and Growing Some Plants There Is Nothing You Can Do About It. 

Marijuana is not only for the wealthiest in our society and not only for the homeowner class.

 

As part of our “Let’s Improve the Ontario Rental Industry” we have invited landlords and tenants to share their opinions on how we can make these improvements. These opinions are from individual contributors and are not the opinions of the Ontario Landlords Association. We believe by fostering communication between landlords and tenants we can improve the Ontario rental industry.  Landlords and tenants can share your thoughts and opinions by emailing us at landlordtenantsolutions@groupmail.com Submissions should be between 500 to 2000 words and up to 5 pictures.)

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Ontario Tenants – Our Landlord Community Wants To Hear From You (And Work Together For Mutual Success!)

Wednesday, August 23rd, 2017

ola landlord and tenant win win campaign

Renting Should Be a Win-Win Situation. Ontario Landlords Want to Rent to Good Tenants and Ontario Tenants Want To Find Good Landlords and Great Rental Properties. We Want To Help Make It Happen

With property prices increasing in Ontario over the past few years and rents rising, rental properties (and the landlords and investors who own them) have been in the news a lot recently. 

We have also had the new Rental Fairness Act which makes changes to the Residential Tenancies Act.

Many small landlords were expecting some important changes to balance the playing field. By adding urgently needed protections for small landlords it would keep a lot of good people in the rental industry and encourage more investment, more rentals, and more affordable options for tenants.

Bad Landlord Alert…or not

While the media seems to focus on the “bad landlords out there” the reality is these are rare cases and not representative of the larger Ontario rental market.

There are a lot of great people who are landlords (or want to invest in residential properties) and we need to make sure there is a fair regulatory environment to protect them. These landlords are huge corporations with unlimited resources. 

In reality many landlords are teachers, fire fighters, nurses, doctors, electricians, plumbers, contractors and people working hard for some cash flow and their retirement.

Changes need to be made to protect small landlords

We need to discuss important issues such as allowing damage deposits and pet deposits.  We need a healthy debate on allowing a fixed term lease to really mean the lease actually ends unless renewed by the landlord and the tenant.

It’s important for all stake-holders to make changes in how we can quickly evict tenants who don’t pay or abuse other tenants or their landlord.

Many Ontario Landlords area also greatly concerned about the legalization of marijuana and how this will impact rental properties. Many landlords are gravely concerned this will lead to many tenant vs. tenant challenges.

The Rental Fairness Act Isn’t Very Fair

Instead of dealing with important issues, there were policy changes such as expanding rent control and making it even harder and more expensive for family landlords to get control of their property for their own use. There were also punishing new rules for those who include utilities in the rent.

Alberta landlords are working hard to let the general public know how hard they work and how much they care and it’s time we did the same in Ontario.

Good Landlords Want Good Tenants…And Good Tenants Want To Find Great Landlords and Great Properties

Experienced and successful small Ontario landlords know we are running a business and our tenants are our “clients.”

As we usually own only one or two rental properties we usually do our own tenant screening. This means we are personally involved in the rental process.

Successful small residential landlords also know the key to a profitable rental business means we have to first attract some of the great tenants out there to rent from us, and then we need to work hard to ensure they love renting from us and want to stay. It’s hard work and it’s not easy.

Secrets and Tips From Successful Landlords

We asked our most successful members to share some tips to help other small landlords and investors on how to avoid problems and create a win-win situation between the landlord and your tenants.

(a) Screen your Tenants Yourself

With the excellent tools available landlords can take their business “into their own hands” and make sure they know who they are renting to. Make sure you know the rules and laws. 

For example: Getting a real estate agent friend to run credit checks for you can be illegal and cost your real estate friend their license with Equifax. If you are running credit checks make sure they are legal.

(b) This Is A Hands On Business

Get to know your tenants and get to know your rental property. Make sure you make the place safe and comfortable. 

One of our Ottawa landlords wrote: create a rental property that you would want to live in.

(c) Treat Your Tenants With Respect And Appreciate Them

You provide a terrific, safe, fairly priced rental property to your tenants. You are a service-oriented landlord and that means when things need fixing or issues arise, you make it a priority and get things fixed fast. When you fix these issues you cooperate with your tenant to make sure both sides are satisfied with the solution.

(d) Many Ontario Landlords Were Tenants Not So Long Ago

One OLA member wrote on the Ontario landlords forum:

“I rented for years when I was in university.  My first year was in residence and after dealing with the meal plan and a small room I couldn’t wait to get out and rent a property with my friends.”

“Looking back the experience renting a house wasn’t the best.  The landlord would didn’t ever make repairs.  When the basement flooded we were told just to ‘not go down there’ and the stove only had 2 burners that worked (and the oven was so weak it took what seemed like hours to cook french fries.)”

“Now I’m planning to buy an income property near a university.  Maintenance and dealing fast with any issues will be a priority.  But what else can we do to stand out from the crowd and offer a terrific housing experience for student renters?”

(e) What Would Lead You To Stay At A Rental For A Longer Period of Time?

Many landlords feel stressed out when looking for new tenants.  While there are a lot of great tenants out there, there are also people who know how to play the system and can lead to a lot of financial and emotional stress.

What are Tenants Looking For When Choosing a Rental Property and a Landlord?

Our members usually own one or maybe two properties. They aren’t large, huge corporations that don’t care about individual tenants and don’t care about vacancies.

Ontario Landlords Want To Hear From Ontario Tenants

The media keeps talking about “super high rents” and “bad landlords.”  They fail to differentiate between large corporate landlords and small landlords who are simply trying to run a rental business.

Here are some questions from small landlords to help us improve how we run our rental businesses:

 1. What Do Tenants Want In a Landlord?

2. What Type Of Features Are You Looking For In a Rental Property?

3. What is the Best Way To Advertise To Attract Good Tenants?

4. How Can Service-Oriented, Professional Small Landlords Show You Their Professionalism?

We Welcome Tenant Comments on Ontario Rental Industry

Are you a tenant now?  Are you looking to rent? Let us know your experience and your feelings. 

Landlords and tenants can share your thoughts and opinions by emailing us at landlordtenantsolutions@groupmail.com

(Please note you will not receive a reply upon emailing us)

Tell us what is happening and we’ll share it with landlords to help improve the Ontario rental industry!

While recent rules seem create a narrative of “landlords vs. tenants” the reality is good landlords want good tenants and good tenants are looking for professional landlords and great rental properties. Let’s work together to make this happen!

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