Hamilton’s Property Standards Committee found itself navigating a landlord-tenant dispute, again, at its July meeting.
In what is becoming a regular occurrence, the quasi-judicial committee was being asked by City bylaw managers to issue an order to comply to force a landlord to make repairs to a unit, repairs the landlord was reluctant to make until they had an eviction order removing the tenant.
In August 2023, the now-former tenant called the City’s bylaw department to seek an inspection of the house they were renting.
The landlord had applied to Ontario’s Landlord-Tenant Board for an eviction order for non-payment of rent.
Following the August 2023 inspection, the City issued nine orders against the landlord to repair the unit.
At the July 3, 2024, Property Standards hearing, the landlord’s representative stated they secured an eviction order dated June 3, effective July 3, and have contractors scheduled to inspect the house.
City bylaw told the Committee it would accept a 60-day order to comply, requiring the landlord to make all repairs by September 3rd.
While the Committee questioned having a 60-day order without knowing the house’s current condition, it eventually approved the City’s request.
For his part, the owner’s representative stated they will endeavour to meet the 60-day deadline.
In practice, while City bylaws state repairs must be effected immediately, the City has been allowing procedural manoeuvres to delay issuing final Orders to Comply until after proceedings at the Landlord-Tenant Board are complete.
In the Wilson Street order, the landlord’s representative stated they did not provide the dishwasher, which the order requires them to repair or replace.
Hamilton’s property standards bylaw does not include any provisions for considering and dealing with landlord-tenant disputes.
The Property Standards Committee is now regularly dealing with landlord-tenant disputes.
In June, they dealt with a unit with an estimated $70,000 in damages. At the time, the landlord did not yet have control of the unit, with the Sheriff’s Office involved in removing “unauthorized occupants.” In that case, the matter was adjourned to a future meeting, with the landlord stating they will not rent the unit until all repairs are complete.
At the end of this month’s meeting, City staff stated they do not expect to request an August meeting of the committee.
Production Details v. 1.0.0 Published: July 3, 2024 Last updated: July 3, 2024 Author: Joey Coleman Update Record v. 1.0.0 original version