The Ontario Conservative government is proposing significant changes to Ontario’s land-use planning laws, regulations, and policies.
Included in Bill 97, the Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, 2023, are changed to the Residential Tenancies Act that will “explicitly permit” tenants to install air conditioning units, increasing fines against landlords who violate renoviction and own-use eviction laws,
Residential Tenancies Act Changes:
- More Adjudicators and funding for Landlord Tenant Board to “reduce case backlog”;
- Permitting tenants to safely install portable air conditioners in their units. When electricity is included in rent, the landlord may charge for the increased electrical use;
- To remove a person from a unit for renovation, a landlord must pay a qualified person to provide a report stating the repairs or renovations are so extensive that they require the vacant possession, before applying to renovict a tenant;
- Increased fines for failing to allow a tenant to return after renoviction;
- Shorter timeline for landlords to occupy a unit themselves, or their close family member, when evicting a tenant under this provision.
Landlord Tenant Regulations (Residential Tenancies Act) Public Consultation
The Province is inviting comments on landlord-tenant regulations.
1) “Seeking Feedback on Proposed Changes to Help Protect Tenants from Bad Faith Renovation Evictions.”
The Province says it wants to add regulations requiring landlords to provide renovation updates when they evict tenants to ensure tenants are updated when they can exercise their right of return.
The Province proposes to increase the time allowance for people to file to the Landlord Tenant Board when their right to return is violated.
Comments can be submitted to the Ontario Regulatory Registry at this link until May 23, 2023.
2) Allowing portable and window air conditioners in residential units.
The Province proposes to “to explicitly permit tenants to install window or portable A/C units, at the tenant’s cost” in units without central air conditioning.
Production Details v. 1.0.0 Last edited: April 16, 2023 Last updated: April 16, 2023 Author: Joey Coleman Edit Record v. 1.0.0 original version
As a small scale landlord, the problem with the renovation rule allowing tenants to pay the same rent as before is that it completely disincentivises renovsting the apartment. Why would anyone renovate an apartment if they aren’t getting paid higher rent afterwards? This rule is terrible and needs to be eliminated. This is why there are so many slumlords.