Posts Tagged ‘Alberta landlords’

Tenants Must Have Their “Foreign Rental Housing Experience” Count To Be Accepted Into The Housing They Deserve in Canada

Sunday, April 2nd, 2023

CBC news recently had an incredible story about Komaldeep Makkar who came to Canada from India, via Dubai. She and her family had high academic qualifications and great jobs in Dubai.

While successful in Dubai it had always been her dream to come to Canada and be a top architect as she had ben while in the Middle East and India.

After becoming a Permanent Resident Komaldeep found finding a a suitable job impossible to get. Whether it was not accepting her high degrees or demanding “Canadian work experience” it was clear that she was being ‘blocked’ from the career she earned.

Komaldeep made it clear: Canada “erected systemic blockades to prevent immigrants from succeeding…”

Tenant Newcomers Are Experiencing The Same Discrimination

As the Canadian government website states: People come to Canada for many reasons. No matter where they’re from or why they’re here, a warm Canadian welcome can make a difference. Help make your neighbourhood a better place for everyone to live.

However, like Komaldeep was kept out of getting the career she deserved, many Tenants who are new to Canada are being kept out of the housing they deserve.

Many newcomers were home owners before. Or they were Tenants in their homelands with years of successful rental history and even letters of recommendations from former landlords!

However, many newcomers are experiencing the same erected systemic blockades as Komaldeep did.  Only this time is discrimination for getting approved for renting a Home in Canada by landlords.

It’s Time To Change The Human Rights Code On Housing To Prevent Discrimination Against Foreign Rental History

The Human Rights Code already has rules for landlords to not discriminate against Tenant applicants for many categories. Now it’s time to include landlords must take into account “Foreign Rental History.”

Newcomers can provide with landlords with documentation which must be included in any judgement on renting a Home:

-Leases from previous tenancies

-Deeds from former home ownership

-Bank account statements showing rent was paid

-Letters of recommendation from previous landlords

How Can This Be Enforced?

Tenant applicants can file a Human Rights complaint if the landlord discriminated against them.

However, we have an even better idea:

A Landlord Must Rent To Newcomers If the Following Is Provided:

-Proof of 2 Years of Successful Renting in Their Home Nation (no evictions)

and

-A Letter of Recommendation From Your Foreign Landlord (Rent was paid)

Is This Fair?

While many Tenants think this might be going too far as they want to protect their tenant history and it is unfair for PRYING EYES who they don’t know who is looking at their person info., it also protects the landlord just as they would want to screen a local Canadian Tenants. So landlords should be happy they are getting so many qualified Tenants.

We Asked Landlords From Across Canada How They Felt About This New Policy

A landlord from Ontario replied “I never knew how difficult it was for new immigrants to rent a place. This new policy sounds like a great way to help people find a new home.”

A BC landlord said “This sounds like it even the playing field for all tenant applicants.”

Nova Scotia landlords were united on this new policy being “really what Canada is all about, be fair.”

More Fairness

An Alberta landlord from Edmonton wanted to add to this new law: “It’s also important that landlords pay for the costs of all translations of the documents because we will recover the fees for this from the rent profits the Tenants will pay.”

Landlord Feels Like a Prisoner After ‘Freemen On The Land” Declares Rental Property “His Embassy”

Tuesday, September 24th, 2013

 September 24th, 2013

Alberta Freemen of the Landlord Is a Nighmare for His Landlord

We had prepared to post about the great news out of Hamilton.

Hamilton landlords stuck together, created noise, and played a key role in stopping landlord licensing.

We’ll get to that soon because we want to first share a story that’s being reported everywhere from Sun News to the CBC.

It’s about a landlord facing a nightmare situation.

Landlord Victimized By Bad Tenant

We know there are lots of bad tenants out there. We have discussed everything from tenants not paying the rent for months to some tenants being charged from threatening their landlord.

The situation going on now in Alberta is something we haven’t seen before.

Owning Rentals In Alberta

Alberta is known for having some of the more fair laws for landlords in Canada.

Fair laws such as allowing damage deposits and ‘no security of tenancy’ rules. This means a negotiated lease agreed to and signed by both the landlord and tenant carries weight in unlike in Ontario.

This leads to lots of success stories and happy landlords in Alberta.

However, for those who don’t do proper tenant screening problems still arise.

Freemen On The Land

Rebekah Caverhill owns a nice duplex in a great area of Calgary, Alberta.

In 2011 she agreed to rent to Andreas Pirelli based on the recommendation of a friend. He said he was a handyman and she agreed to let him move in in exchange for three months of contracting work.

Pirelli moved in and began abusing his landlord and the rental property, including:

1. Changing the locks without the landlords’ permission

2. Completely gutting the bathroom and the kitchen

3. Painting the bedrooms black

He also informed this landlord he would only pay half of his monthly agreed to rent of $1,500 because the work he did on the home was suddenly to cost $26,000.

Pirelli  had declared himself a member of what’s called Freemen-on-the-land.

This is a movement which believes they don’t have to follow the law if they declare themselves to be sovereign citizens.

Don’t Let This Happen To You

Rebekah Caverhill was taken advantage of and is paying a hefty price. Is it fair? Of course not.

She rented to a tenant based on trust and the recommendation of a friend.

Unfortunately in this day and age you need to do more before handing over the keys.

 

Tenant Screening Ontario Landlords Association Small Claims Court

 

Being a successful landlord means starting out right. This means doing credit checks and other tenant screening to make sure you know who is coming into your property.

Join the discussion at the Ontario Landlord forum