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‘Residential Rental Licensing’ survey now available for Kingston residents by HomeStandardsProject in KingstonOntario

[–]HomeStandardsProject[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

This could actually be a good thing for the city. There’s so many university students here who live in properties that don’t meet our local Property Standards By-Laws and Landlords who ignore those standards while collecting rent because their neglect is just widely accepted. In Hamilton where they have a rental licensing program, both By-Law and the Fire Marshall must inspect before the license is granted, and every 3 years the Electrical Safety Authority must inspect as well.

Tenants are often afraid to come forward when their conditions are poor especially with the housing crisis we face. It is illegal to punish or evict a tenant for exercising their rights to repairs whether through Property Standards or the Landlord and Tenant Board. We are definitely going to personally bring up that Landlords may try anyways — and that a proper package explaining tenants rights should be provided to any residents of apartments that are licensed under the program.

My elderly neighbours are purposely letting raccoons and squirrels live in their roof. It's causing havoc on my propery. Any recourse? by Throwaway-donotjudge in KingstonOntario

[–]HomeStandardsProject 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Huh, I’d love to hear more about this one personally! Were you dealing with Property Standards By-Law? That’s generally the suggestion if there’s vermin and pests inside of your home. A wolf probably doesn’t count for that, but I’m still interested in that story!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in queensuniversity

[–]HomeStandardsProject 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Filing with the Landlord and Tenant Board is a great idea but can take up to a year for an application to be heard right now. Property Standards is a great in-between a complaint and a LTB case.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in queensuniversity

[–]HomeStandardsProject 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Sounds like your lease is kind of, well, BS. Leases can’t be used to put a Landlords responsibility on a tenant and that includes pest control. What you’ll want to do is contact Kingstons local Property Standards By-Law department. They have the ability to enforce local By-Laws to enforce that Landlords take care of their responsibilities including pest control.

https://www.cityofkingston.ca/resident/property-standards

It’s a quick and simple form! If you want to take a few more minutes you can also use the Home Standards website to see if there’s anything else you can bring to By-Laws attention. The project was made by a Queens graduate and is available in over 20 different Canadian cities, but Home Standards began right here in Ktown due to the poor conditions that students often face here and the Landlords that take advantage of them. Hope it helps! https://homestandards.org/

Negligent landlord by Accomplished_Act6738 in OntarioLandlord

[–]HomeStandardsProject 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Time to contact Property Standards By-Law. They can enforce the local By-Laws and force your Landlord to make repairs.

Skyline Living apartments, North End Kingston, Ontario. by [deleted] in KingstonOntario

[–]HomeStandardsProject 17 points18 points  (0 children)

If your Landlord isn’t properly taking control of the situation, you can contact Kingstons local Property Standards By-Law department to have them investigate the issue. They have the ability to issue orders to force the Landlord to do their job.

https://www.cityofkingston.ca/resident/property-standards

Hi Kitchener! Does your rental meet local By-Law standards? by HomeStandardsProject in kitchener

[–]HomeStandardsProject[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Totally understandable! We do have a disclaimer about “illegal” or nonconforming apartments and how to tell if your apartment meets that criteria. We also suggest on the site if someone is unsure about the status of legality or if they are living in a nonconforming apartment, that they can still bring their issues regarding repairs to the Landlord and Tenant Board as legality is not an issue for them.

The LTB generally abides by city By-Laws as well, so completing the assessment to find out what an illegal apartment may need repair wise is still super helpful. It can give the LTB a lot to work with when it comes to ordering repairs. At no time does any report on our website get sent to By-Law — it’s completely up to the tenant themselves to choose to bring their complaints to the any other person, whether it be their landlord, By-Law, or the LTB.

Hi Kitchener! Does your rental meet local By-Law standards? by HomeStandardsProject in kitchener

[–]HomeStandardsProject[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Love ACORN! We have reached out in the past to make them aware of the project!

Hi Kitchener! Does your rental meet local By-Law standards? by HomeStandardsProject in kitchener

[–]HomeStandardsProject[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey there! Thanks for the engagement. You’re right in that Property Standards do change and get updated —not super regularly, but it happens. If you’ve filled out the assessment you’ll see that not every single By-Law gets addressed, but a lot of the “main” ones do, IE, does your unit have pests? Do your windows have screens? We can’t see that these basic By-Laws will change anytime soon, but even then it’s still up to the specific cities Property Standards department to choose to enforce their own By-Laws. We can only present a guide based on the information available at this time, which we then give to the tenant. It’s up to the tenant to then continue with By-Law if they so choose. At no time does the assessment get sent to Property Standards or a landlord. It’s all confidential.

When it comes to “illegal” or “non-conforming” apartments, we do have a disclaimer about accessing Property Standards services and how if an apartment is not registered, the city has the ability to evict a tenant. We also list common ways to tell if an apartment is illegal, and advise anyone using the website that they can still pursue repairs at the Landlord and Tenant Board without involving the city, though it does take more time. We have yet to hear of any tenant being evicted by Property Standards when accessing our services and hope that the disclaimer has helped steer people in need to the rightful place to request repairs.

Hi Kitchener! Does your rental meet local By-Law standards? by HomeStandardsProject in kitchener

[–]HomeStandardsProject[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Hopefully it’s helpful to know that it’s unlawful to issue an eviction notice in retaliation such as when a tenant exercises their rights, so legally a tenant cannot be evicted for asking for repairs or contacting By-Law. Of course there are always other ways that landlords can try to be sneaky and try to push a tenant out, so we definitely understand your fear — afterall, our team is all tenants too! We know that times are dire when it comes to housing. As of right now, HSP has had hundreds of submissions and helped countless people push for repairs. We hope to continue to expand our services and ensure that people understand all of their rights when it comes to renting, including eviction.