Excruciating delays at Ontario’s Landlord and Tenant Board: Ombudsman

TORONTO — Ontario’s ombudsman says a backlog of cases at the Landlord and Tenant Board has grown to 38,000 and it is taking an average of seven or eight months – sometimes up to two years – for a hearing to be scheduled.

The findings are part of a large report today from the ombudsman, who has issued 61 recommendations aimed at improving the functioning of the board and what he calls the excruciating delays.

Ombudsman Paul Dubé says that when the pandemic hit, the backlog was already at 20,000 applications, and the subsequent move to virtual hearings and a moratorium on evictions impeded the board’s efforts to chip away at the backlog.

He says the backlog means tens of thousands of Ontarians are being denied timely access to justice, with some tenants stuck in unsafe living conditions and some small landlords coping with tenant abuse and facing financial ruin.

The ombudsman says part of the problem is a shortage of adjudicators compounded by a cumbersome appointment and training process.

Dubé says both the board and the government have accepted his recommendations and have pledged to report back to his office on their progress in implementing them.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 4, 2023.

The opioid and homelessness crises and the effect on the property management industry.

We have seen an increase in requests for the removal and disposal of discarded drug paraphernalia, and biohazards (blood, bodily fluids, and human waste) in residential and commercial properties. These materials must be collected, removed, and disposed of with extreme caution as they may have come into contact with potentially harmful substances such as:
Fentanyl
Carfentanil
Heroin
Crystal meth
Cocaine

Or they may have been used by people infected with communicable diseases such as:
HIV
HEP A/B
Tuberculosis

“Needle Litter” pickup and bioHazard clean up services by 1st Trauma Scene Clean Up.

Contact 1st Trauma Scene Clean Up at: traumascenecleanup.ca

2023 Deposit Interest Rate

The interest rate for Security and Pet Damage Deposits for 2023 has been calculated at 1.95%. This calculation, as outlined in the Residential Tenancy Regulations, is 4.5% below the prime lending rate for BC (6.45%). Just as with any other year, to calculate how that effects the repayment of a deposit landlords should utilize the RTB’s Deposit Interest Calculator found at http://www.housing.gov.bc.ca/rtb/WebTools/InterestOnDepositCalculator.html

No Strata Rental-Restriction Bylaws Allowed

November 24 2022…

Today, the Government of B.C. announced changes to legislation that will remove rental restrictions in strata properties and introduced the new Housing Supply Act which will provide select municipalities with increased powers to address housing development. These changes will have implications for consumers, real estate licensees, and real estate developers in our province.

For further information please visit: https://alpha.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/strata-housing/legislation-and-changes/changes-to-legislation#five