By increasing the number of adjudicators and staff at the Landlord and Tenant Board to speed up decision times and strengthening a wide range of tenant protections, Ontario is supporting renters and rental housing providers.
To continue reducing active applications and decision times at the Landlord and Tenant Board and to improve service standards, Ontario is investing $6.5 million to hire five staff members and appoint 40 additional adjudicators. The Landlord Tenant Board now has more than twice as many full-time adjudicators thanks to this increase.
Attorney General Doug Downey stated, “Residents and rental housing providers deserve fast results, and government bureaucracy should not stand in the way.” In order for the Landlord and Tenant Board to continue its efforts to reduce its case load, provide better customer service, and resolve disputes more quickly, we are investing millions of dollars to increase the number of adjudicators and staff members.
Ontario is additionally doing whatever it takes to make life more straightforward for leaseholders, with proposed changes that would upgrade occupants’ freedoms to introduce cooling in their units. In addition, the government intends to strengthen safeguards against evictions resulting from conversions, demolitions, and renovations, as well as those for the landlord’s own use.
Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark stated, “Today’s announcement builds on the record number of rental housing starts that have occurred in recent years thanks to the actions our government has taken.” We realize this record is being tested by outside financial elements, yet we will keep on making moves that lay the basis for long haul lodging supply development. In the meantime, our government is doing real things to make tenants’ and landlords’ lives easier, more stable, and more predictable.
A landlord or their family members would have to move into the unit by a certain date if they wanted to evict a tenant so they could use it for themselves or their family.
In order to renovate a unit after evicting a tenant, landlords would be required to:
If the landlord doesn’t allow the tenant to move back in at the same rent, the tenant would have two years after moving out or six months after the renovations are finished (whichever is longer) to apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board for a remedy. Provide a report from a qualified person stating that the unit must be vacant for renovations to take place. Update the tenant in writing on the status of the renovations if they plan to return. Give them a 60-day grace period to move back in
A tenant who is behind on their rent can work out a repayment arrangement with their landlord to pay the rent and avoid being evicted. The government wants to mandate landlords and tenants use of the Landlord and Tenant Board’s straightforward repayment agreement form to make things easier for everyone. This would make sure that everyone knows their rights and responsibilities better.
The province’s long-term objective of building 1.5 million homes, including rental properties, by 2031 remains the primary focus. More Homes Built Faster made changes in October 2022 to make it easier for home builders to replace smaller, older rental buildings with larger, more modern ones.
Changes that will aid in the development of a more balanced framework for municipal rental replacement by-laws are currently the subject of government consultation. For instance, the public authority is thinking about requiring substitution units to have a similar center elements (e.g., number of rooms) as unique units. Additionally, the proposals would permit existing tenants to move into the new unit at the same rent. This would support the preservation of affordable housing, encourage the redevelopment of older, decaying structures, and increase the supply of rental housing at the same time.
