My husband and I have a rental property in Brampton, due to tenants owing rent. We filed L1 application (Application to Evict a Tenant for Non-payment of Rent and to Collect
Rent the Tenant Owes ) in December 2023. A hearing was scheduled at the end of April 2024, tenants didn’t show up at hearing, then a conditional order was issued in one month, requesting tenants to pay rent before a certain day. After that day we went to the court asking for the enforcement of the order. About 3 months later, in the first week of September, two sheriffs came and posted notices, helping us change the lock, and give vacant possession of the house to us.
Within 72 hours the tenants didn’t move things much, only took away a few bags and their dog.
On this Monday, the Landlords and Tenants Board (LTB) issued an interim order saying tenants requested review, saying the last order LTB issued can not be enforced while it is stayed.
We sent back the sheriff enforcement notice to LTB, telling them the order had already been enforced before tenants requested review. But LTB ignored our documents so far.
Then let’s see what has been going on with the police. On this Monday evening, we went to check the house, and found some curtains pulled up. The curtains were pulled down after the 72 hours period passed for tenants to retrieve their property. We called the police. The police entered the house and didn’t find anybody in the house, saying the back door lock was unlocked, everything looked fine, and couldn’t see any sign of a break in. Then the police waited for us to draw all the curtains down, locked all the doors and we and police left the house. About one hour later we came back and found out the house broke in again and some people were in the house.
We called the police again, two officers came, one police officer saying the tenants had a document showing the order to be stayed, so the tenants can stay. That order stay is not equivalent with tenants who can break in and stay inside my house when it is in our possession. I told the police I would like to explain the sheriff’s notice, he said he didn’t need to and he would arrest me if I entered the house and blocked the window (with curtain and some cloth) again. Then the police told us to leave here and go home.
Next morning, I called the Peel region police division 22, and an operator announced they had sent police twice last night, and now police received calls from LTB and sheriff saying the order be stayed and waiting for review, so the tenants could stay in the house, the police won’t come if I called again.
When tenants did not pay rent, we went through all the LTB procedures, paying the sheriff and waiting. It took almost 9 months to get it enforced. We thought these headaches and financial strain were finally over, but we were wrong.
Questions: should the LTB approve a request to review an already enforced order? Do the tenants have the right to break into the house that is already in the possession of the landlord and the police do nothing about the breaking in tenants and even warning to arrest the landlord if the landlord comes to the house?
Where is the justice for our small landlord?
