SOLO Executives on LTB Delays Hurting Ontario Landlords

My name is Boubacar Bah (Boubah) and I am a founder and chairperson of the Small Ownership Landlords Ontario (SOLO) Inc. We are a federally registered non profit organization who came into existence in the summer of 2020 when the premier of Ontario famously said to tenants: “Do not pay your rent!” Although premier Ford added “ if you can not afford it” some unscrupulous tenants only took the first sentence. That put some landlords in the delicate position of not getting the income needed to support the mortgage, taxes and maintenance of the housing unit and created a huge financial and emotional problem when a tiny proportion of tenants refused to pay their legally due rent although they were getting all kinds of income support. Those professional tenants who could but chose deliberately not pay their rent did it because the current system allows them to do

The Ontario government did not help the small landlords in this instance. On the contrary it forced them to house people for free. We have over 3,500 landlords in our Facebook group and these numbers are growing. It shows the problem is real and can not be ignored.

While SOLO Landlords fully support the right to housing and the majority of our tenants – including mine – are responsible law abiding citizens and working together with their housing providers to solve any potential problem, the closure of the LTB, the multiple eviction bans and the lengthy process to get a resolution has put an enormous strain on landlords particularly small landlords who still have to pay taxes. SOLO landlords have documented losses in the millions of dollars due to the eviction ban and non paying tenants.

We tried to explain to the government and part of the public that we are not “rich faceless” landlords but mom and pop ordinary citizens providing a vital service to tackle the affordable housing crisis in Ontario. It is a win-win situation where small landlords offer roof to people who will otherwise be denied the fundamental right to housing.

Our issue is the fact that we – small landlords – have been obligated to take a burden from the state. We are forced to house people with all the expenses associated without any compensation. We want fairness : a working process, a compensation system that allows small landlords to support the financial burden we are right now. According to Stat Canada there are over 1.2 million landlords with one or few properties in Ontario alone. Most of our members are suffering and exiting the rental market. That needs to change.

We want the government to :
● Insure that financial support be given to landlords who lost income, during the pandemic shut down, the same way all others groups were offered
● Adjust the functioning of the LTB so there is a time limit where a hearing can be held to adjudicate disputes between tenants and landlords and make sure that rent is paid during that time period
● Educate law enforcement to make them understand there is a small segment of “professional tenants” that use the process to abuse the housing opportunity given to them
● Build more affordable housing so the burden will be lifted from small landlords who are at mercy of professional tenants.

We want to work with the government to find a win-win solution. But the current situation is not healthy nor sustainable for our province. We want changes so both tenants and landlords can resume their collaboration for the benefit of all.

My name is Rose Marie and I am the Vice-Chair for SOLO – Small Ownership Landlords of Ontario. Major changes are required for the Independent Housing Providers who provide accommodations to residents in Ontario. If changes are not made and made quickly, the rental housing stock will continue to decline and tenants looking for accommodation will continue to not find a place to live that matches their budget. Ask residents in Durham Region how difficult and frustrating it is to find housing. Property providers across Ontario will continue to sell their properties as they no longer want to be attached to the Residential Tenancy Act that stacks the cards of “access to Justice” against them. Immediate changes need to be made regarding professional tenants who abuse the rules. The Board and the Ontario Government have no efficient process or desire to stop the theft. Homeowners should not be forced to pay for their expenses and another property they own, that is occupied for months and months and sometimes more than a year with someone who is not paying their rent. Here is the kicker. The LTB knows who the repeat professional tenant offenders are and do nothing with the information. The owner now has the risk of losing that home to the bank or having to sell it just like it happened in one case that I’m going to tell you about. The same professional tenant is permitted to steal from a landlord but if they walked into a grocery store, and walked out with food that was not paid for, they would be arrested on the spot.

Let me give you one example. A landlord had a tenancy issue that began in 2018. Due to the loss of rental income which is now $27,200, he could not afford to maintain his principal residence and decided to move his family into the basement suite and the tenant lived on the main floor above them. In May of 2021 he thought he had his last hearing date regarding the issues of harassment and violence against him and previous tenants. His tenant had threatened to shoot him when he was standing on the outside of the door and she was on the inside. He recorded the threat, it was investigated by the Police, and a Police report was given as evidence in the hearing. The Adjudicator did not grant an eviction and said he felt the landlord had instigated the threat. Please remember what I just said about the Adjudicator. That same month that tenant pulled a gun on him and the Police arrived with more than 30 vehicles, helicopters, a mobile command post, canine unit,  bomb disposal unit and a tactical vehicle tank  of which there are only 2 in the GTA and blocked the street.  After a 6 hour standoff, the Police used the tools at their disposal and brought the situation to an end.

Not only could this have been resolved in much less time, by the LTB, it was an additional cost to all of us, the taxpayers, and in the end it was resolved by the Police, not the Landlord Tenant Board. Let me add one other interesting point, the emergency Order from May 25, 2021 requested by the landlord’s paralegal had still not arrived by mid-June 16, 2021. It’s shameful. Change needs to happen. He has stated, he will never be a landlord again. That means 2 rental properties have been removed from the market. People say to me all the time, how is this happening? And I say Ladies and Gentlemen, you have just entered The Twilight Zone.

Please support us in our legal action at www.solo.ca/legalaction