By Edward Lander

A bill proposed by the Ford government on Oct. 23 is raising concerns among tenants’ associations and housing advocates across the province.

Bill 60: Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act proposes significant changes aimed at reducing the backlog in Ontario’s Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB).

If passed, the bill would shorten the notice period for evictions over unpaid rent, allow landlords to evict tenants without compensation if they want to use the unit and make other changes to LTB procedures, according to Ontario’s Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Yaroslava Montenegro, the executive director of the Federation of Metro Tenants’ Association (FMTA)—an organization that represents and organizes tenants’ associations in Toronto—said the bill is an erosion of renters’ rights.

“It will impact tenants across the province, especially when it comes to eviction,” she said.

The government announced on Oct. 26 it would be scrapping part of the bill that proposed changes to “security of tenure”—a rule which allows renters to remain in their unit after their lease has expired on a month-to-month basis.

The bill originally proposed finding “alternative options on lease agreement expiry that could allow landlords to control who occupies their units and for how long,” according to an Ontario government media release.

Montenegro said this would have allowed landlords to evict tenants for the purpose of raising rent, circumventing rent control.

She credits the government’s backtrack to the advocacy of renters and tenants’ associations across the province. ACORN—a national community and tenant union—gathered the signatures of 23,000 Ontarians opposed to the bill according to Ontario ACORN representative Bader Abu-Zahra in a statement shared with The Eyeopener.

“There’s a lot of predatory landlords that are waiting to take advantage of people”

Regarding the backtrack, Rob Flack, Ontario’s minister of municipal affairs and housing said in a public statement on Oct. 26 that “residents expect stability and predictability in Ontario’s rental market, and now is not the time to consider changes to the system.”

Montenegro said even with the backtrack, the remaining parts of the bill will have far-reaching effects on renters in the province.

“The rest of the bill is still very much intact,” she said. “We think this is something that needs to be fought against no matter what.”

She refers to the proposed change to security of tenure as a “canary in the coal mine,” possibly signaling further erosion of rent control in the province.

Montenegro said the bill will affect all tenants in Ontario, especially vulnerable groups, including students—who she says already face barriers in the
rental market.

“It’s important that once you venture out beyond student housing in the university, you know that there’s a lot of predatory landlords that are waiting to take advantage of people,” she said.

A lack of knowledge of tenants’ rights and typically low incomes are contributing factors to this, according to Montenegro.

Peter*, an international student at Seneca Polytechnic is familiar with situations like this. He said he and his five roommates were exploited by a landlord for three years beginning in September 2022.

In their final year of renting, one of Peter’s roommates missed three months of rent. Peter’s landlord took the case to the LTB to seek eviction. The roommate paid off their rent but the landlord did not take down the case.

Peter and his roommates were told their lease would not be renewed as their landlord would be renovating the unit. The landlord sent someone to inspect the unit who determined that they had incurred $10,000 in damages.

Peter said this was an exaggeration and there was no damage beyond normal wear and tear.

“The charges they added were because we had push pins on the walls. Because we had LED lights,” he said.

He and his roommates told the landlord they did not have funds to pay the fee.

“They basically started threatening us—that ‘look, if you don’t pay us this money we’re going to proceed with the court case,” he said.

“Obviously, we were scared. We did not understand how things worked here”

Peter and his roommates ended up settling with the landlord to pay $3,000 in exchange for the LTB case being thrown out. He said they feared how the case could affect their visas and thought it best to diffuse the situation.

“Obviously, we were scared. We did not understand how things worked here,” he said. Montenegro said this kind of intimidation is not uncommon.

“International students are particularly vulnerable to being swindled by landlords who are not following legislation,” she said.

Montenegro said one of the best ways student renters can protect themselves is by forming or joining a tenants’ association. However, this can be difficult for students as they may be less likely to stay in one place.

She said even a small organization, like that among roommates, makes tenants stronger than they’d be alone.

“It’s always better to organize than to not,” Montenegro said.

*This source has requested to remain anonymous. The Eye has verified this source.