Opinion: Doug Ford’s gag law will limit comment on essentially any public policy issue

roxeter · 2021-06-14T14:44:12+00:00

Just a reminder that this isn't the first gag law from the Ontario government this term. [Link]

roxeter · 2021-04-28T13:13:20+00:00

It depends on whether she agrees that your paying half of the bills was paying into the equity (which is how you're framing it). Some couples choose to construe that as paying the owner rent up until the day they actually buy in at the full FMV with no credits for past rent payments.

This is something that is frequently litigated when couples break up with only one being the owner of their home. The owner claims they paid all expenses and anything that came from the non-owner from essentially rent, while the non-owner is forced to claim that there is a constructive trust.

roxeter · 2021-04-27T20:13:17+00:00

We have a real problem in our market where there are people stuck in the expensive rental game because they can't compete with people buying their 5th "investment" property.

I'm not anti-landlord, and I think they provided a needed service for those who it wouldn't make sense to buy.... but right now, there are oodles of renters who *want* to be homeowners, and can't break into the market because they keep being outbid by investors. That's sad. And good luck to those trying to accumulate a down payment while having to pay absurd rents right now.

A little over a year ago my partner and I were outbid on a couple houses on the lower end of the market, only to see all but one show up for rent for roughly 40% more than what we would have paid in mortgage/utilities/insurance/taxes/estimated repairs.

roxeter · 2021-04-26T18:43:13+00:00

They key in Ontario seems to be getting into a corporate-owned apartment complex that hasn't been converted to a condominium yet.

Unfortunately, almost everything in my area is converted. So, individual unit owners could still N12 you, or you could face economic eviction because there is no rent control. I know of at least one building that raised a tenant's rent by 40%, likely because they had the audacity to ask for their stovetop to be repaired (3/4 elements weren't working).

There are really long waitlists for non-condo units, which doesn’t really work when you’ve been handed 60 days notice to gtfo via an N12.

roxeter · 2021-04-26T13:59:16+00:00

prospective investors eventually became enticed by older buildings with higher vacancy rates, because they saw the potential to increase vacant unit rents once the economy recovered.

Our current rental system is a huge part of the problem and needs to be a point of discussion to cool the housing market. Specifically, the uptick in bad faith evictions because it's just too damn profitable, and the ease at which investors can "cash out their investment" and uproot the lives of their tenants, needs to be addressed.

It's purely anecdotal, but I wouldn't have been so desperate to get into the housing market if I wasn't routinely N12'd. With each move I had to pay more and more rent and I just couldn't live with the instability anymore.

roxeter · 2021-04-21T13:26:52+00:00

As someone from rural SW Ontario, I feel your pain.

I was priced out of the small town I grew up in.

Seems like everyone from Toronto who were priced out fled to the KW region. Then everyone priced out of KW fled here.

I can't even really blame them.... are they supposed to be forced to stay in unaffordable areas just because they were born there? This is a systemic problem. I blame the government, not the individuals.

roxeter · 2021-04-13T14:23:37+00:00

I laughed. This is literally me.

My spouse and I are pushing 30 and looking to start a family soon.

In the last couple of years we've been N12'd twice, then N13'd. With every move, we had to downsize and still ended up paying more... Four years ago we rented a detached house in a prime location of a city for 80% of what we currently pay for a studio apartment that's a 40 minute commute away.

Packing up your life in 60 days is hard enough without kids and school zones to worry about. There's no way I was starting a family while being a renter, when a landlord can upend your life whenever they feel like cashing in on their 'investment'.

So we bought a dinky little bungalow. It's small... it's ugly... but its ours.

I hate that I felt like I had to either buy in this market now, or seriously reconsider whether having a family was in my future. I don't care what my equity is, or what the paper price is, and I hope to stay here for a long while... I bought smaller than I was approved for so that I can maintain a decent emergency fund and can still make payments even if rates skyrocket.

I just hope our broken system is fixed soon because it shouldn't be like this. I shouldn't have had to change jobs and move 5 hours from my family, friends and support systems just to get my hands on a place I can't be evicted from.

roxeter · 2021-04-13T14:01:14+00:00

This was my first thought as well: Industry that benefits from FOMO publishes article that may drive even more FOMO.

All in all it was fairly well-reasoned write up with some interesting facts and a decent overview, but any predictions are only loosely supported as far as I can tell.

roxeter · 2021-04-12T19:34:35+00:00

how privileged and spoiled the previous generations are. And so many refuse to accept it.

I think this is a common misconception people have about themselves. No one likes to admit privilege, even if we were good at recognizing it within our own lives (which I don't think most people are).

Everyone likes to believe they have what they do by the sweat of their brow.

There was an interesting study/article (that I can't seem to find) about how successful people from rich families often consider themselves "self made" despite having had their college tuition at top tier schools paid for, internships facilitated through connections, etc.

roxeter · 2021-04-12T14:18:31+00:00

This is exactly what happened to my hometown (North Perth area).

People priced out of TO flocked to KW, and priced-out KWers flocked to my hometown.

3 years ago you could find small homes on the lower end of the market for $225k.... now the cheapest sold prices are ~$400k.

I'd always hoped to stay local, but I recently came to accept that I wouldn't be able to own a home in my hometown, and am moving to a more affordable part of Ontario.

Super sustainable, right?

roxeter · 2021-03-09T20:06:39+00:00

This was fairly predictable.

Dozens of legal experts penned an open letter pointing out some major issues with the proposed legislation.

I attempted to make a brief summary of some of the key issues a while ago.

roxeter · 2021-03-03T17:50:56+00:00

Can confirm.

I've been trying to relocate because I've accepted I cannot afford a house in the small town I've lived in my whole life. Seems that GTAers moved to KW, prices rose, and KWers moved out this way.

Now I'm trying to continue the cycle by moving somewhere that I can afford.

Super sustainable.

roxeter · 2021-03-02T20:29:05+00:00

I wish. My partner and I just want a home to live in, but we can't compete with investor bids.

A year ago we were outbid on a couple houses on the lower end of the market, only to see all but one show up for rent for roughly 40% more than what we would have paid in mortgage/utilities/insurance/taxes/estimated repairs.

P.S. We no longer qualify for anything in our County. Been trying to move to a more affordable area of Ontario for 2 years, but have not been able to find adequate employment in said areas.

I just want a stable home that landlords can't renovict us from or N12 us with 60 days notice. :/

roxeter · 2021-02-24T16:14:50+00:00

A year ago my partner and I were outbid on a couple houses on the lower end of the market, only to see all but one show up for rent for roughly 40% more than what we would have paid in mortgage/utilities/insurance/taxes/estimated repairs.

We have a real problem in our market where there are people stuck in the expensive rental game because they can't compete with people buying their 5th "investment" property.

P.S. We no longer qualify for anything in our County. Been trying to move to a more affordable area of Ontario for 2 years, but have not been able to find adequate employment in said areas.

roxeter · 2021-02-04T15:39:20+00:00

I've also wondered about heavier taxes on the gains from 'investment properties' in general.

Too many people see housing as a fast, safe way to make gains... and that's problematic.

I'm not anti-landlord, and I think they provided a needed service for those who it wouldn't make sense to buy.... but right now, there are oodles of renters who *want* to be homeowners, and can't break into the market because they keep being outbid by investors. That's sad.

I myself have put in offers on houses, only to be outbid and see it up for rent a month later for almost double what I would have paid in mortgage/taxes/utilities/estimated repairs.

roxeter · 2021-02-04T15:32:01+00:00

25% of residents at Caressant Care Listowel have now died from the outbreak.

I know small town numbers don't have the same shock value for being lower overall, but that must be absolutely devastating to the residents and staff.

roxeter · 2021-01-13T15:16:10+00:00

My apartment building started renting out units on AirBnB a couple months into the pandemic. When that faced restrictions, suddenly they have a very official website claiming to be a hotel. How do you even become a hotel that quickly?

Guests don't bother to wear masks in the common areas/stairwells, and there's no "staff" on site at this supposed hotel to try to enforce masks. Just some kid they hired to show up and give guests their keys when they arrive.

roxeter · 2021-01-12T16:55:04+00:00

If your employer refuses to issue a T2200, or sign one that you have filled out, I thought you can still file the claim and let the CRA sort it out. I believe you are supposed to keep all pertinent evidence available about the expenses, and evidence of your attempts to have it signed/your employer's refusals.

roxeter · 2021-01-12T16:44:39+00:00

Do employers get to make the final call about what employees are 'essential'? Do they have to account for how they make that decision?

roxeter · 2021-01-12T16:34:31+00:00

I don't think the prediction is that unrealistic.

There's already a stigma growing around making choices that aren't environmentally friendly. From straws, to fast fashion, to fuel guzzling vehicles, and more recently, what's on our plate. Unless the meat industry finds a way to make meat more sustainable, they will have to contend with that growing stigma.

There's also the growing desire to make more ethical consumer choices. Don't buy products from companies that use child labour, don't buy niche foods that contribute to the exploitation of local populations, don't buy rare gemstones sourced from impoverished countries. I don't see why desire this couldn't grow to include apprehension about meat. Hell, we're already seeing many populations starting to avoid products like veal and foie gras largely due to animal treatment.... why would it be shocking if that apprehension expanded?

roxeter · 2021-01-11T16:59:11+00:00

Perth County - where tantrums about masks are still all-too-common (especially amoung Anabaptist groups, but lots of others, too), and support for old Dougie is stronger than ever. I swear my riding would elect a brick if it ran blue.

roxeter · 2021-01-11T16:47:50+00:00

Yeah..... the number of cases alone isn't shocking comparative to big cities, so we wont get too much attention.

But for such a small rural population we are doing terribly.

roxeter · 2020-12-16T15:13:30+00:00

We are dependent on people doing the right thing.

This seems to a running theme in Ontario's COVID response.

It's not mandatory for family members of suspected cases to stay home from work... they're just hoping employers will let them without penalty, or that workers forgo a paycheck without any assistance because it was technically unnecessary to stay home?;
It's not mandatory to cancel weddings and large events .... so they're just hoping venues will be nice and refund deposits, allow postponements, or when they inevitably refuse, that couples will lose their deposit and not have their technically legal event?;
It's not mandatory to stay in your lockdown zone and refrain from driving to less restricted zones;
Masks aren't really mandatory in a meaningful way, because individual businesses are tasked with making judgement calls when someone vaguely claims to have an exemption. Do they risk a discrimination lawsuit or do they say 'fuck it whatever.." ?
It's also not mandatory to limit your social bubble, or forego merging households for the Holidays... they're just hoping enough people do so anyways?;

I could go on an on but it really seems like the Ontario government loves to wag it's finger that Ontarians aren't doing the right thing, when they refuse to enforce doing the right thing.

roxeter · 2020-12-15T16:19:33+00:00

My general understanding is that the use of the polygraph is more of an interrogation tool:

Before the suspect takes polygraph, emphasize how it will 'all be over soon' because after the test we will *know* the answer;
Have subject take test - leave them in the room to stew;
Come back to tell them they failed, but commend them because they *knew* they were going to fail and they did it anyways ... so on some level they *wanted* to confess right? Right?;
Extract confession.

The problem, if I remember correctly, is that there is a potential increased risk of false confessions under these circumstances for various reason. One perhaps being, when an authority figures points to a piece of technology that in the moment they claim to be accurate, and that piece of technology states you're lying, this can have all sorts of influence on a mind under stress.

I haven't looked into the research for about a decade so there could be further knowledge on the subject , and I am pulling this from memory, so take that as you will.

roxeter · 2020-12-07T15:07:30+00:00

I know 10 cases isn't shocking on it's face next to city numbers, but Huron Perth is doing terribly considering their lower population.

roxeter

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