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Messages - Richard

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1
Rent / CTV News - Toronto One-Bedroom averages $2,495
« on: March 13, 2024, 10:08:40 am »

Just saw this onthe news this morning...

Average asking rental prices reached $2,193 last month

Quote
A new report says the average asking price for a rental unit in Canada was $2,193 per month in February, marking a 10.5 per cent jump year-over-year and the fastest annual growth since September 2023.





2
Rent / ACORN releases a New Report on Renovictions
« on: March 07, 2024, 09:02:49 pm »

(Just thought that this terrific work should be more broadly announced...)



Ontario ACORN releases a New Report on Renovictions, calls on cities to act!



Posted February 28, 2024

Across the province, tenants in Ontario are dealing with predatory corporate landlords who have been evicting long term tenants for no fault of their own by issuing eviction notices for demolitions or major renovations (N13s) or claiming to move back into the unit (N12s). When this happens, tenants are forced into a housing market that is totally unaffordable, often paying hundreds of dollars more in rent or being priced out of their community completely.

The Ontario government could end the renoviction crisis with vacancy control – an extension of rent control to vacant units that would eliminate the financial incentive for landlords to do renovictions in the first place. The Province’s refusal to introduce full rent control is a blatant failure to protect Ontario’s tenants.

That’s why Ontario ACORN is calling on all Ontario cities to enact anti-renoviction bylaws based on the successful policy of New Westminster, BC. Hamilton City Council passed one earlier this year, thanks to the efforts of Hamilton ACORN. Why not other cities?

Today, ACORN released a NEW report that reviews the scale of N12/N13 renovictions happening across the province and in select cities from 2017 to August 2023.

Read the report here.




3

** BIG NEWS **

Mayor Olivia Chow has indicated that she is going to keep the Toronto property tax increase for multi-residential dwellings (apartment buildings) capped at 3.75%, which means that landlords will not be able to apply for Above Guideline Rent Increases to recoup the tax increase cost.

Here's an article from the Toronto Star about her decision:
   Mayor Olivia Chow to soften tax blow for renters in 2024 budget

This is terrific news for the nearly 50% of Toronto residents who are renters, because it means we will be spared huge rent increases this year.

(Just to be clear, the "Guideline Rent Increase Amount" is going to be 2.5% for 2025, which is high, but this news from our Mayor means that the rent increase won't be higher, which it would have been if the tax increase was above 3.75%.)

5
Rent / Globe: Average rent in Canada hit $2,178 in October, the sixth month
« on: November 13, 2023, 09:27:24 pm »

Sorry that this article is behind a pay-wall, but for those who can get it...


Average rent in Canada hit $2,178 in October, the sixth consecutive month of all-time highs

Quote
Toronto was the next highest ranked major city at $2,607 for a one-bedroom and $3,424 for a two-bedroom.

Quote
“I get asked all the time, ‘How are people affording this?’ The answer is they’re not,” Rentals.ca spokesman Giacomo Ladas said.

Quote
He noted a major factor driving up rent prices is the trend of fewer people looking to become homeowners, given the continuing climate of high interest rates. One-third of Canadian households are renters, the rate for which is growing twice as fast as it is for homeowners, he added.

“People are not moving out and going into the home ownership market because they can’t with these rates,” he said.



6
Rent / A City-run program could help you pay rent
« on: October 25, 2023, 04:06:40 pm »

I saw this article on City-TV's website, which reminded me of the Toronto Rent Bank.  With rents and income inequality both at all-time highs, it seemed apropos to psot something to remind eveyone about the Rent Bank.

CityTV - A City-run program could help you pay rent.

More information about the Rent Bank is available from the City of Toronto's website.




7
Rent / CTVNews - Toronto landlord raises rent to $9,500 a month
« on: September 05, 2023, 07:29:24 pm »

This was posted by CTV News today:  'This is egregious': Sisters shocked when Toronto landlord raises rent to $9,500 a month

Quote
Two sisters were shocked when a Toronto landlord raised their rent by $7,000 per month.

“At first we thought he can’t be serious when we received this notice and we were just very shocked,” Khadeja Farooq said.

The landlord had told them he wanted to raise the rent to $3,500 and when they complained he decided to raise it to $9,500.


8
Other Tenant Problems / Re: VISITOR PARKING PAY PER USE
« on: June 24, 2023, 12:57:45 pm »

Hi Zulfiqar,

Your landlord cannot unilaterally remove services that you have.  So if you have a parking spot for your unit, they aren't allowed to just take it away.

But you said this was the "visitor" parking...  if your lease states that you have access to visitor parking for your guests, then they cannot do this, but I suspect that this isn't listed in your lease, in which case it's unclear.

If I were you I would telephone (or e-mail) the experts at the FMTA:  The Federation of Metro Tenant Associations (FMTA) is a renter advocacy organisation here in Toronto that has many experts who can answer your questions either by telephone (416-921-9494), postal-mail, or e-mail (hotline@torontotenants.org).

Let us know what they say.

- Rick


9

Here's a link to the ombudsman's website, which has the report:

https://www.ombudsman.on.ca/resources/news/press-releases/2023/ombudsman-calls-for-legislative-change,-overhaul-of-moribund%E2%80%9D-landlord-and-tenant-board

My feeling is that Doug Ford's chronies have had it in for the LTB from the beginning.  His government basically underfunded the LTB to the point of creating this mess – they can't afford to hire enough adjudicators – thereby creating the circumstances by which he can replace the LTB with something even less fair to tenants.

If you are researching this, then don't be fooled by the announcement made on April Fool's Day of last year about the conservatives increasing funding for the LTB:

https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/1001918/ontario-invests-19m-to-help-tackle-housing-crisis

That's a drop in the bucket of what's needed, Ford's government has been chronically underfunding the LTB for years.


10

NDP calling for Reinstatement of Real Rent Control on Monday

This is Good News!

No more of Mike Harris’s Vacancy De-Control, that has allowed rents to skyrocket, and that has incentivised landlords to evict tenants to jack-up the rents!

I mean, I can't imagine that Doug Ford will allow this motion to pass, but if it did it would fix several problems that currently plague the housing market.

I'm signing the petition right now.  HERE's THE PETITION




12
Rent / Average Rent for 1 bedroom in Toronto greater than $2500!
« on: March 14, 2023, 07:47:50 pm »

This was just posted on CTVNews's website:

Looking to rent one-bedroom apartment in Toronto? New report suggests you'll pay more than $2,500 a month

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/looking-to-rent-one-bedroom-apartment-in-toronto-new-report-suggests-you-ll-pay-more-than-2-500-a-month-1.6312568

Quote
The average cost of rent a one-bedroom apartment in Toronto has eclipsed $2,500 and is now up more than 20 per cent year-over-year, a new report has found.

Here is a link to the Rentals.ca report quoted in the article:
Rentals.ca March 2023 Rent Report



13

Ontario landlords could be sitting on thousands of dollars of interest owed to tenants

Quote
But some Ontario landlords are sitting on thousands of dollars of interest accrued from rental deposits and have stopped paying out interest together, according to the Federation of Metro Tenants' Association. In some cases, they also asking renters to fork over cash as often as every year in a process some advocates are calling "double-dipping."

"They are sucking the bone marrow of the tenants," said Torres.



14

Doug Ford's Plan To End Rent Control Is A Flashback To 20 Years Ago

https://www.huffpost.com/archive/ca/entry/doug-ford-rent-control_ca_5cd57857e4b07bc729786031

Quote
Today, millionaire Premier Doug Ford introduced a plan to end rent control on all new units in Ontario. It was a startling reversal of his May campaign promise: "When it comes to rent control, we're going to maintain the status quo."

For tenant advocates, it was a flashback to 20 years earlier.

In 1997, the Mike Harris government gutted rent control.

At the time, Ontario had something called "vacancy rent control" (also called "Quebec-style" rent control) which limited how much the landlord could raise rent when a unit turned over and changed renters. The loss of this protection is why, 21 years later, a one bedroom in Toronto costs $2,200 to rent, while in Montreal you can find the same for about $1,000 cheaper.

[...]

At the time, the government pulled a page out the old landlord-lobby communications playbook promising that "thousands and thousands of rental units" would be built as a result of ending rent control. Tenant advocates, on the other hand, predicted that few would be built and the only outcome would be soaring rents.

Sadly, tenant advocates proved correct. Purpose-built rental housing development flatlined, and Toronto is deep into a nightmarish affordable housing crisis. Today, finding an affordable place to live in Toronto is almost impossible, and the city's low-income population is being crushed under high rents or leaving altogether.


15
Above Guideline Rent Increases / Rent Reductions follow Above Guidelines...
« on: September 02, 2022, 11:36:45 am »

This is important!  Not everyone knows that Above Guideline Rent Increases only last for a certain length of time (prescibed by the Landlord and Tenant Board when they award an AGI to a landlord), and after that time the rents are decreased by the same amount.

So for example, if you receive an AGI for 1.75% (which applies in addition to any regular annual rent increases you will receive) for 12 years, then after twelve years your rent will decrease by 1.75%.

Note, however, that typical landlords are not predisposed to lower your rent on their own (if you don't know about this rent lowering, or forget about the AGI because it happend so long ago), and if you continue to pay the higher rent for a full year, then you lose the right to have your rent lowered.

A real-life example of this is 111 Lawton Blvd, here in Toronto.  These renters have received three AGIs over the last 15 years or so, but those rent increases are about to come off their rents.  (Thank goodness these renters are organised, and know the rules!)  Here's a link to their blog 111 LAWTON BLVD. ABOVE GUIDELINE RENT REDUCTIONS - AKELIUS CANADA LTD.


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