CHANGE NEEDED TO RENTAL LAW
Reforms should meet needs of renters and landlords, writes Tony Baena.
Speaking in Victoria last month, B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan said his government would fix loopholes in the Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) that favour bad landlords and add supply to address the critical housing shortage for renters in the province. The B.C. Seniors Living Association urges him to go even further and fix what we believe are RTA deficiencies that are forcing seniors out of their retirement communities.
Earlier this month, Abbeyfield House, a nonprofit retirement home for 10 seniors in Courtenay on Vancouver Island, announced that it expects to close because it has been designated as a property that falls under the RTA and cannot afford the legal costs of contesting an arbitrator’s rejection of a rent increase. Abbeyfield House argued that it was not subject to RTA provisions.
Operating since 1997, Abbeyfield House provides residents with individual bedroom suites furnished with their own possessions. There is a common kitchen, dining room and sitting areas, and residents are served three meals a day.
When the rent was increased last year after a number of years with no increase, a resident objected and the increase was rejected after an RTA dispute resolution at which the arbitrator also ruled that Abbeyfield was subject to the provisions of the RTA.
Independent supportive housing for seniors does in fact fall under the RTA, and while protection for renters is obviously important, the RTA in its current form is not in the best interests of seniors living independently in what are essentially communal retirement communities rather than rental properties.
For example, independent living retirement communities usually provide some additional services to residents such as meals and housekeeping. These services are included in the monthly fee they pay. However, under the RTA these services must be charged separately and incur taxes, which increases costs for the residents.
The RTA gives the Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB) jurisdiction over tenancy, but not services, yet residents in independent living homes tend to see rents and service charges as one fee and believe the RTB can resolve disputes related to either rents or service charges. Likewise, the RTB has jurisdiction of rent increases, but not service fee increases.
The notice period of one calendar month when a resident wishes to vacate a property also poses issues for both the resident and the retirement community operator. Residents typically leave independent supportive housing to access a higher level of care. Under the RTA, the senior would need to give one calendar month’s notice, which could represent almost two months’ rent in some cases while they also pay for the higher level of care they’ve moved to. For the operator, the short notice move-out may lead to a delay in emptying the vacated suite of belongings. A compromise needs to be found.
Ending tenancy can also be a challenge for independent living homes if they must follow the RTA provisions, which can be a lengthy process. The primary reason for the required move out of residents from independent living homes is the deterioration of a resident’s health or cognition to the point where it is no longer safe for them to live independently or their actions and behaviours endanger other residents. Operators often assist in finding more suitable living arrangements which generally means assisted living or complex care.
Under RTA, if the resident (or their family) did not wish to leave, the landlord would have difficulty enforcing a move out for safety reasons, which are not provided for in the RTA.
Of equal concern is the RTA’s stipulation that landlords (and in the case of retirement communities, volunteers and staff as well) cannot enter a resident’s suite without 24-hour notice. This means that if a resident does not come to the dining room for lunch or dinner and does not answer their door, staff are unable to enter the suite legally and must call an ambulance and wait until it arrives before entering. This places the resident at risk if they have fallen or are sick.
Throughout the RTA there are provisions that are either inappropriate for seniors housing or a disadvantage to residents if a landlord chose to enforce the act. As it stands, this law protects neither seniors nor operators of independent supportive housing. We urge the new government to put it right.