Ontario Makes New Proposal to Stop Renovictions

It doesn’t matter what side of the key you are on, the Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) in Ontario is, well… broken. Recently the Ontario Government announced a proposal to change the procedure for landlords planning renovations for their property. I uploaded a video to TikTok explaining the new proposal and ended it with a question “How would you change the RTA in Ontario?”. Naturally because the internet is always internet’ing, I received some very interesting responses.

@mathmatiks98 Whether you are a landlord or a tenant, there are most likely things that you would like to see changed about the current Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) in Ontario. There are ways for either side to take advantage of how the rules are currently written and there are countless cases that the landlord tenant board (LTB) are dealing with. So much so that there is a current backlog of eight months or longer just to get a hearing. With every proposed change comes the potential for more cases to be added to the mix so im curious: what would you change about the current RTA in Ontario? #Landlord #Tenant #Ontario #RTA #LandlordTenantBoard #Renter #Rent #Leases #BrantfordRealEstate #Renoviction ♬ original sound – Matt Allman – The Crew

Designed to keep the rental market from becoming the wild wild west, the Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) spells out what landlords and tenants can and can’t do. After hearing some of the horror stories from clients and colleagues alike, it’s clear that there are tenants and landlords using loopholes to circumvent the system.

How Does the Renoviction Work?

When a landlord kicks out a tenant by saying they’re going to do some major renovations, tear down the place, or turn convert it into a commercial property, etc, that’s called a renoviction. Usually, landlords do this by giving the tenant an official notice, called an N13, to end their lease or just by telling them they are required to leave because of the reno plans.

The new proposal by the government would give the tenants a 60 day grace period to elect to move back in to the unit after renovations are complete. Landlords would need to get a qualified professional to confirm that the unit needs to be empty for renovations to happen. They would also have to keep tenants informed in writing about how the renovations are going.

If the landlord fails to let the tenant move back in at the same rental rate, the tenant can take action by applying to the Landlord and Tenant Board for up to two years after moving out or six months after the renovations are complete, whichever is longer.

Will This Actually Stop Renovictions from Happening?

This is a step in the right direction to combat the renoviction, but could also deter landlords from doing any renovation work until absolutely necessary which might decrease the enjoyment of the property.

Overall it’s clear that there needs to be some sweeping changes to the RTA overall, but we won’t see a complete overhaul any time soon. For now the provincial government will continue to pick certain areas to adjust and hopefully there won’t be any new loopholes created by any of the new changes coming down the pipe.