Rent strikers vow to stay put despite eviction threat
Rent strikers in east Hamilton vow to keep resisting their landlord’s proposed hikes and demanding repairs despite receiving eviction notices.
The notices were expected, says Syed Yazdani, who as “strike captain” has been rallying support in his highrise on Grandville Avenue just east of Centennial Parkway.
But Yazdani is digging in his heels. “You get my rent when you replace my windows and you replace all the balcony doors.”
Tenants in about 140 units of Stoney Creek Towers, which are four buildings, are withholding rent from landlord InterRent and property manager CLV. Some have been on strike since May 1.
Recently, tenants received one of two notices. The N4 is an application to the Landlord and Tenant Board to evict a tenant for not paying rent. The L9 is an application to collect unpaid rent.
A spokesperson for the landlord said that despite the notices, the goal isn’t eviction, but adherence to rental regulations. “We do not want to evict,” Roseanne MacDonald-Holtman said.
InterRent and CLV want to charge residents with a nearly 10 per cent hike in rent over two years through an above-guideline increase (AGI).
AGIs allow hikes above the province’s annual set rate (1.8 per cent this year) to cover renovations for structural problems, health and safety, plumbing, heating or electrical issues, for instance. Landlords can’t use AGIs to pay for regular maintenance or cosmetic upgrades.
The striking residents argue the proposed hikes aren’t justified and demand attention for drafty windows, broken balcony doors, faulty heating and broken appliances.
MacDonald-Holtman said tenants are encouraged to fill out work orders, and repairs are done as quickly as possible.
She said InterRent is following the rules as they apply to AGIs. “Here, at InterRent, we’re proud investors in Hamilton, putting millions into our communities.”
The landlord has renovated vacant units and hiked rent to newcomers, charging about twice as much.
Yazdani, 26, his wife and their young son have lived in their two-bedroom unit for four years. A paralegal by training, he holds down more than one job as a security driver and truck driver.
The family pays $870 a month. Yazdani says many in the buildings live on modest wages or social assistance. “People in the working class are stuck because they can’t increase their wages.”
Than Kin, who lives with her husband and adult son in a Grandville building, vows to keep fighting the rent increase despite receiving an L9 notice.
The 70-year-old retiree from Cambodia said through an interpreter she has never had to pay for the cost of hydro during her 12 years in the building. They pay about $750 a month.
But the property manager recently sent residents notices demanding annual payments of $235 for air conditioners. She says the cool air helps her high blood pressure.
CLV offered Kin $3,500 to leave, but Kin declined. The area is convenient with Eastgate Square, walk-in clinics and other services nearby, she said.
In documents online, InterRent, a real estate investment trust, notes its “ongoing effort to drive rents,” a strategy that includes “marketing geared to the right tenant profile.”
MacDonald-Holtman declined to comment on tenant profiles or cash incentives.
Last week, some Hamilton rent strikers took their campaign to the heart of Toronto’s financial district to put pressure on one of InterRent’s big investors.
Members of the Hamilton Tenants’ Solidarity Network, which is helping organize the Stoney Creek Towers strike, took their concerns to CI Financial Corp. executives.
In a statement to The Spectator this week, a CI Financial spokesperson said the protesters expressed concern about the AGI and other issues.
“We told them that we would look into it, which so far has included obtaining information about the matter,” Rebecca Caissie wrote in an email.
MacDonald-Holtman said InterRent can’t speak on behalf of its investors “other than to say how confident we are as a company investing in Hamilton.”