Housing experts are sounding the alarm about a new bill by the Doug Ford government proposing changes to security of tenure rules, which they say threatens the foundation of tenant protections and rent control in Ontario.
On Thursday, the Ford government introduced Bill 60, the “Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act.” Within the act, the province said it would “consult on alternative options on lease agreement expiry,” which experts say suggests the province could take away renters’ rights to have their lease be automatically extended at the end of the initial term.
According to the bill, landlords could have the option to “adjust tenancy arrangements based on market conditions, personal needs or business strategies,” and it argues more flexibility around leases could bring more rental units to the market.
While Ontario’s largest landlords group suggested the consultations could address landlord concerns, tenant advocates say ending security of tenure would serve to displace existing tenants by allowing landlords to circumvent rent controls and protections against evictions.
“It’s a straightforward attack on tenant protections in Ontario,” said Ricardo Tranjan, political economist at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
The bill could affect about 1.7 million renter households in Ontario, making up 30 per cent of provincial households, and 558,000 renter households in Toronto, who represent about half the city.
The Ministry of the Attorney General said the province is seeking a “more balanced approach” than the current lease expiry rules, one that “continues to protect tenants while supporting landlords, including mom and pops who rely on rental income to help pay their mortgage.
“By balancing the rights and responsibilities of landlords and tenants, we are rebuilding confidence in Ontario’s rental housing market to ensure families can find a safe place to call home,” a provincial spokesperson said in a statement.
“Tenants will continue to have strong protections across the province, including from significant rent hikes, (with the) 2025 rent increase guideline holding below the inflation rate at 2.5 per cent,” the spokesperson added.
The rent increase guideline is the legal limit rents can be raised for rent controlled units. Doug Ford removed rent control for any units first rented after November 2018.
Under the Residential Tenancies Act, tenants in Ontario are protected from eviction unless there is a legal reason — such as unpaid rent or because the landlord wants to move in — even after their lease expires. Their tenancy becomes indefinite, Ricardo Tranjan, political economist at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives said.
Removing security of tenure would mean that tenants have no protections from eviction once their lease period ends, Tranjan explained. They would have to renew their lease at the end of the period, but at that point, landlords could raise the rent by whatever amount they want.
Dania Majid, a staff lawyer at the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario, said the bill has the potential to be “devastating” for renters in the province, especially as large corporations buy up Canada’s rental stock and landlords increasingly focus on maximizing rent prices.
Tony Irwin, president of the Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario — a group representing landlords across the province — said he “frequently” hears from property owners who are hesitant to rent out units after hearing negative stories about the eviction process at the Landlord and Tenant Board, or given the tighter economic conditions of today’s market.
Asked if he had shared that feedback with the province, Irwin said it was a topic that had been broached before. “It’s certainly something that’s in our general conversations, where we talk about feedback that we’re hearing. I’ve talked about that publicly,” he said.
However, he declined to say what policy changes might help hesitant landlords put their units onto the market.
But Majid stressed the bill is concerning for tenants. Already, some landlords are getting around rent control by doing bad-faith evictions, for example, by purporting to evict a tenant for personal use or renovations, then getting a higher-paying tenant to move in, she said.
“By creating these fixed-term leases, (landlords) don’t necessarily have to resort to those dirty tactics,” she said. “This is much quicker.”
Toronto Coun. Josh Matlow said he intends to bring a motion to council for the City of Toronto to oppose the bill, which he said “would hurt our residents and make life less affordable.”
He added that while having a good landlord makes life “more secure” for tenants, tenants with bad landlords need their governments to provide guardrails, “and what Doug Ford is doing is suggesting he wants to get rid of those guardrails,” Matlow said.
“Doug Ford’s trial balloon that he is floating to eliminate rent control and security of tenure needs to be popped before it goes too far,” he said.
Bruno Dobrusin, an executive member of York South—Weston Tenants’ Union, said the bill is a “slap in the face” to renters who have been asking the government to reinstate rent controls it removed for new apartments after November 2018.
“Doug Ford is declaring war on tenants,” he said. “It sounds harsh, but that’s how we see it.”
Dobrusin said ending security of tenure would “destroy” the stability of tenants with rent control and instil fear in tenants who choose to speak out about their rights being abused for fear of being kicked out.
“We would constantly be battling landlords on individual leases, which right now is not something we have to do because we can focus on the collective issues,” he said.
Tranjan added that the idea that removing tenant protections could bring more supply to the market is an idea the government has touted “time and again, but it doesn’t hold.”
He added that there’s no data to support that a substantial amount of rental units are sitting vacant, ready to go on the market.
With files from Victoria Gibson
