December 12th, 2024
December 12th, 2024
QUEENS PARK – MPP Jessica Bell (University–Rosedale) stood with Toronto renters to announce a new motion that would empower the Rental Housing Enforcement Unit (RHEU) to swiftly and effectively respond to tenant concerns.
“Too many renters in Ontario are being taken advantage of by landlords that know they can break rental laws and get away with it,” said Bell. “These laws are weak, and the lack of enforcement makes them weaker.”
As a department of the provincial government, the RHEU is intended to uphold landlord and tenant rights outlined by the Residential Tenancies Act. A lack of funding and insufficient enforcement power have left the office ineffective, investigating just 1% of complaints received in 2022-2023.
“The RHEU should be a place renters can go to for help with illegal eviction or a maintenance issue. They shouldn’t be turned away, they shouldn’t get a busy signal – they should get a responsive bylaw office that will take steps to ensure they can live in safe and well-maintained homes.”
Quick Facts:
Out of 16,394 calls in 2022-2023, the RHEU investigated just 219 cases leading to only 17 convictions
The RHEU has a budget of $1.8 million – less than 10% of the budget for the Provincial Animal Welfare Service
MPP Bell’s Motion 164 would invest in the RHEU to increase staffing levels, improve its enforcement powers, and ensure tenant complaints can be resolved within 30 days
Additional Quotes:
“The heat in my building has been broken since October 7th. I emailed my property manager several times to fix it. I then tried to escalate it to the RHEU—heat is a vital service. Their advice was to follow up with my property manager. Tenants shouldn’t have to go through all this just to make sure that they have heat or that someone isn’t entering their unit illegally. Our rights and protections should be enforced.