After working hard for several years, my husband and I saved enough for a down payment for a second property. We were motivated to take this leap because of our only son, who has been living with us in hopes to afford to buy a home eventually. With the unimaginable rise in real estate prices, and the looming fear of our child’s generation being locked out of home ownership, we figured the time was right to invest. The property closed in March and we promptly engaged a reputable real estate firm to help us find a suitable tenant who could enjoy the property for a few years until our son was ready to inherit this financial obligation.
Worried about the impending COVID-19 situation unfolding just as we began the mortgage payments, we carefully reviewed the tenants. On July 1, 2020 we handed the keys to my newly minted property to a young girl who claimed to be a “project manager” working at what appeared to be a reputable IT firm and boasted an excellent credit score. On paper, she was a perfect candidate, and appeared very respectful and professional. Our nightmare started in September when the rent cheque bounced. We were sympathetic and gently brought this up with the tenant. After several reminders and follow-ups, as well as a variety of new excuses from the tenant, the rent was finally paid. Come October, it was the same story. The cheque bounced, several follow-ups were sent, and finally rent was paid in piecemeal; but not the entire amount. Again, it happened in November— but only partial rent was paid. The excuses kept coming, the stories were starting to not make sense, and the tenant became increasingly hostile and aggressive in our interactions, while we grew worried, scared, and frustrated. Fast forward to June 2021 – the tenant owes over $13,500 while I slowly see all our family’s hard-earned savings going down the drain while we subsidize what appears to be our tenant’s very lavish lifestyle. We are first-time landlords so we joined several Facebook groups for support, including SOLO, and promptly hired a paralegal to assist. With legal guidance, we served the N4 in December, and attempted to instantiate a repayment plan, which the tenant breached upon the very first installment. We had come to the realization that this was going to be a very long and painful journey to justice. During this already stressful time, the tenant became increasingly rude, entitled, non-communicative, and vindictive towards us. We uncovered that she was using the property for several illegal businesses, trashed the outside patio with dog poop, was tampering with the fire alarm to smoke indoors, and kept 4 very vicious dogs in the unit. All of this information was withheld from us intentionally during the screening process. Who was this person that we allowed into our home?! When we notified the tenant of a property inspection, entry was denied several times on the basis of “the dogs are unfriendly– be ready to be attacked if you enter.” At this point, we were terrified for our physical safety, ironically while doing our due diligence to ensure the tenant’s basic safety while on our property. Complaints started to pour in from neighbours and the condo’s property management team. With the aid of our lawyer we also realized that documents provided by the tenant were falsified: fake CBR, fake employment letter. So there was nothing to garnish- of course she had nothing to lose! We were growing desperate for justice and knocked on many doors only to find that the officials on the other end were not inclined to help. We wrote to the MPP, pleaded with the cops, begged at the Premier’s office, and even wrote to the Housing Minister and the media but they all refused to listen! Cops said this is a civil matter and sent me right back to LTB. My search for justice led to dead-ends.
I received long and useless generic responses advising me to do exactly what I had been doing for months. I cannot recall how many sleepless nights have passed since this nightmare began. After 7 long months, we were heard by the LTB, then there was more waiting to be done: wait for the order, wait for the eviction bans to be lifted, wait for the Sheriff’s enforcement. In all this time our tenant has taken advantage of almost an entire year of free boarding, at our expense, with absolutely no repercussions. She exploited the government’s response to Covid-19, while small landlords like us, who have poured our life savings into these properties are footing the bill. Last July, our tenant came prepared to rob us – she had heard the reckless remarks of our Premier and was fully aware that the LTB is backed up by several months. She ensured that she would present as the best possible candidate by fabricating her documents. I believe what I have endured are the direct results of a reckless statement made by an irresponsible Government official and the closing of the LTB for several months. These reckless decisions have sealed the fate of many small middle-class landlords in this province. We were prepared to become landlords, but not prepared to shoulder the burden created by the government’s irresponsible decisions and LTB’s inability to cope with the volume of cases. Why are the keepers of justice sleeping while I pay for their reckless decisions? It’s time to hold them accountable before the state of the real estate market and the LTB plummet to new depths, dragging us all down with them.
Signed
– Never again a housing provider in Ontario
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