Tenants have ‘legs cut out from under them’
Layoffs spark calls for relief, eviction bans
As the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic ripples across Canada, another wave may crest within the week as rent comes due for residential tenants.
April 1 is a pressing deadline for tenants and landlords alike as the novel coronavirus keeps people at home and closes businesses, leaving tens of thousands of Canadians out of work.
“It reminds me of a ‘ Mission: Impossible’ movie, where tick, tick, tick, the time is ticking down and someone has to try to save the day before everything explodes,” said William Blake, a landlord who spoke Tuesday on behalf of the Ontario Landlords Association. “This is how a lot of tenants and landlords feel about this April 1 rent deadline coming up.”
Advocacy groups for both landlords and tenants are calling on the federal and provincial governments to offer some kind of relief before April 1.
Geordie Dent, the executive director of Toronto’s Federation of Metro Tenants Associations, spoke on behalf of a group of six tenant associations from across Canada that issued a joint statement on Wednesday asking for governments to ban evictions due to lack of payment and to offer financial assistance to renters.
“Tenants have basically had the legs cut out from under them,” said Dent, noting employment insurance applications are even higher than during the 2008 financial crisis.
The Northwest Territories announced an effective eviction ban shortly after the tenants associations released their statement, but the territorial government noted tenants could still be evicted if they were a danger to other people or property.
The Northwest Territories joined Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec and PEI in halting all non-urgent hearings before their landlord-tenant tribunals, effectively banning evictions due to non-payment of rent.
But other provinces and territories have moved to teleconference hearings, with Saskatchewan’s Office of Residential Tenancies noting on its website that rents are still due.
Grassroots movements have sprung up in several cities in the past two weeks, calling on tenants to withhold their rent payments — either out of necessity or in solidarity with those who can’t make ends meet.
“We definitely agree that the government should be making a rent freeze and finding ways to support low- income people. But for now, we’re focusing on just organizing amongst ourselves because we can’t really wait,” said Paterson Hodgson, a spokesperson for a Toronto- based neighbourhood group calling on tenants to go on rent strike.
Dent recommends that any tenant worried about making their rent on April 1 should first check to see what steps their province or territory has taken in regards to tribunals.
“You don’t want to see people prioritizing their landlord’s mortgage payments over their ability to feed themselves and their families,” said Dent.
On Friday, Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath called on the provincial government to help tenants who can’t pay rent during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Horwath says her party wants Premier Doug Ford to provide direct financial support to households so they can make rent and make it illegal to evict a tenant during the public health crisis.
On Thursday Ontario Premier Doug Ford urged anyone who can pay rent to do so, while promising those who can’t that they will not be evicted. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday that federal officials are looking at ways to get money to community housing providers and the nation’s renters.
Another government source, who was not authorized to detail behind- thescenes talks, said there is an ongoing push with at least six provinces to sign up for a new rent supplement to avoid evictions for hundreds of thousands of renters.