Ontario's Housing Crisis: Inside the Strained Landlord Tenant Board
In the face of rising inflation, high mortgage rates and increasing living costs, the rental market continues to see record highs in growth. This has created a wildly competitive environment for those seeking affordable rental housing and property owners or “landlords” looking to rent out for top-dollar rates to “triple-A” tenants. As often is the case, disputes will arise between the landlord and the tenant during the course of the tenancy.
These residential tenancies within Ontario are provincially legislated by the Residential Tenancies Act, (RTA). The RTA has established a quasi-judicial tribunal system, the Landlord Tenant Board, commonly referred to as the LTB, that provides dispute resolution services for landlord and tenants matters. Either party may apply to the LTB for relief of their dispute and typically, the matter is adjudicated by way of hearing before a member(s) of the LTB.
Regrettably, the LTB has proven to be a largely “broken system”.
There has been a long-standing history of case backlogs with the LTB prior to the Covid-19 pandemic and the wait times have become significantly longer since the post-pandemic resumption. The move by the LTB to a digital platform has seen users wait for as long as 5-6 months for a hearing to be scheduled, and in some instances, several months longer before their matter is eventually heard. Prioritizing case matters on an "urgency" basis has not improved the processing times of cases that have yet to be heard. Moreover, operational standards at the LTB have long since been plagued with staffing concerns - namely a shortage of adjudicators - and complaints directed to the Ontario Ombudsman have not produced any immediate progression towards a viable solution.
These problems have long been known to exist with the LTB and while the Ontario government is prepared to invest millions to repair a vastly deficient system the unfortunate reality for landlords who rely on rental income and tenants that are faced with the uncertainty of their tenancy will continue to have to wait.
Author:
Alexander Chang
Paralegal & Immigration Consultant
achang@realtycarelaw.com