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Landlord/tenant rights, dealing with problems, where to get help...

Tenants have not paid rent in a year 

Jaksbel77
Jaksbel77
Posts: 3


Posted On: 7/26/2022
Jaksbel77
Jaksbel77
Posts: 3
Long story,
Tenants sought dad out to renovate and live in his old house for two years. The agreement was they provide labor and my dad provides the material in exchange for a discounted rent and option to buy dad's house in two years.
After they moved in, they paid the first two or three months...after that they stopped paying. My dad served them with the N11. They retaliated and sued him for bad water, the house is in rural Sudbury and almost 50 years old. So we have well water and they also sued him for mould issues and their health is being affected. They moved in Nov. 2020 This was January 2021 at the height of COVID. Regardless, my dad put a brand new water system and fixed the mould. It took him a few months as my mother, his wife of 50 years passed away as well in Nov 2020. He is almost 80yrs old.

My whole issue is they have had 3 or 4 hearings but they keep getting adjourned but the only side that was heard was the tenants. My dad has yet to be heard. In the hearings, they were ordered to pay rent which they never did. They lied before we actually changed the locks that my dad changed the locks, so my dad was ordered to give them a key. This was in early May 2022. So the tenants lied when they said my dad locked them out. We ended up locking them out after the hearing in May 2022
I must also mention that the tenants vacated the property but did not relinquish their tenancy...all without paying rent or utilities from Dec. 2021 - May 2022. They left no personal belongings, no food, no clothes, nothing in the house. Since they were not paying, we assumed they abandoned the property. My dad was advised that he could sell the house. There were multiple showings and the realtors all said, no signs of anyone living there. My dad ended up selling the house. The closing date May 31st 2022. Who appears out of the blue? The tenants. We were advised by our real estate lawyer to change the locks as they are now squatters. We did, the police were called by them...they somehow were allowed in as they had an order from the court stating they are still tenants. So they broke back in knowing full well my dad sold the house and are now there waiting to get paid to get out. They are also wanting a rent abatement . I'm not sure how that works when they haven't paid rent in over a year. They keep complaining that the house is full of deficiencies and their health has been affected.
We never advertised to rent this house. My dad wanted to sell it and these people approached him. He in good faith thought he was doing a good thing for a family. They knew full well where they were going to live and what the house looked like before they renovated it themselves.
How can the landlord and tenant board not evict them just based on not paying rent for a year. Isn't that alone grounds to get them evicted. The adjucator just takes their word as well without hearing my dad and threatens him with a fine if he locks them out again. They made it sound like my dad locked them out more than once.
My dad is in Sudbury, I'm in Toronto.....he's alone stressed and I'm just distraught on how a system can be so unfair. They are preventing him from selling the house, they deduced to pay him rent in June and July this year...but still no utilities. We've lost the sale of the house. It's costing my dad thousands in lawyer fees and they are now also sueing him for the work they did in the house which was never agreed upon to pay them. The lease clearly stated that they are to provide the labour.
It's just a crazy story and I guess I'm here for my dad to see what can be done to end this nightmare. They are also American I might add looking for residency here.
Their tenancy ends in November of this year. I do not trust the board for another hearing to be adjourned or to evict them. What can be done at this point?
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Moderator
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 4063


Posted On: 7/28/2022
Moderator
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 4063
Hi there,

Thank you for sharing your question and situation with us.

It is best that you contact a community legal clinic for some advice regarding your situation. It may also help to connect with a community resource navigator at 211 to narrow your search. 211 Ontario is a free, confidential service. Their phone service is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Here is a link to their live chat if you prefer to communicate online. Their live chat service is available Monday to Friday from 7am-9pm ET.


It may also help to contact the Landlord's Self-Help Centre directly for some additional information specific to your situation. The Landlord's Self-Help Centre is a non-profit community legal clinic which supports Ontario's small-scale landlord community exclusively.

I hope this information is helpful. Please let us know if you have further questions and if there is any follow up to your question/situation.


Sincerely,


Your Settlement.Org team
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Jaksbel77
Jaksbel77
Posts: 3


Posted On: 7/28/2022
Jaksbel77
Jaksbel77
Posts: 3
Thank you very much for the information. We are really distraught with this whole situation.
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Moderator
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Posts: 4063


Posted On: 7/31/2022
Moderator
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 4063
You are very welcome, please follow up with us if you have any further questions. We hope this matter is resolved as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Your Settlement.Org team
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Jaksbel77
Jaksbel77
Posts: 3


Posted On: 8/9/2022
Jaksbel77
Jaksbel77
Posts: 3
Hello,
I have another question. My dad has sold his home. The buyers do intend to live in the home. The lease for the current tenants ends in Nov. 2022. If they are served the proper documents, they must leave right? Can they refuse to leave?
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Posts: 4063


Posted On: 8/11/2022
Moderator
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Moderator
Posts: 4063
Hi there,

Hello There,

Thank you for sharing your situation and question with us.

In terms of tenant rights, you may find helpful information in the Steps to Justice article My landlord wants to evict me because they are selling the place. What should I do?. Here is an excerpt:
Your landlord might want to evict you if they're trying to sell your place. This is a legal reason for eviction only if the buyer, the buyer's close family member or a caregiver wants to move in.
If so, the landlord must first give you a written notice. The notice should be on a form called Notice to End your Tenancy Because the Landlord, a Purchaser or a Family Member Requires the Rental Unit – Form N12.
Your landlord must also:
  • offer you another acceptable unit to move to, or
  • pay you at least one month's rent.
You don't have to move out just because you get this notice. You can be forced to move only if the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) makes an eviction order against you.

But if you do want to move, you can give your landlord as little as 10 days' notice, instead of the usual 60 days.


Again, if you run into any issues you may want to contact the nearest Community Legal Clinic for some advice regarding your situation. It may also help to connect with a community resource navigator at 211 to narrow your search. 211 Ontario is a free, confidential service.

If you have any additional questions, please feel free to post them here. We hope this information is helpful.

Sincerely,
Your Settlement.Org Team
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