Security of Tenure Puts Tenants in Control

Ontario tenants have security of tenure, so why does Ottawa need a renoviction bylaw?‍

Ottawa city council will approve a renoviction bylaw, despite a second staff recommendation not to proceed. “Renovictions” is the term for bad-faith evictions in which a landlord seeks to evict, or has already evicted, a tenant under the pretext of repairs and renovations. This can occur with or without the landlord serving the tenant with an N13 notice or filing an L2 application with the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB). Bad-faith occurs when a landlord claims they need a unit vacant to complete repairs or renovations but does not genuinely intend to carry out the work.

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‍Tenant advocates say city must prevent unlawful tenant displacement

The unpublished data in the city’s possession shows renovictions in Ottawa are extremely low; however, tenant advocates say a renoviction bylaw is still needed to prevent tenant displacement before it happens. For example, in a recent blog post, the Alliance to End Homelessness Ottawa (AEHO) wrote that “a renovictions bylaw takes a different approach. It is preventative. It seeks to stop unnecessary displacement before it happens rather than attempting to remedy the harm after a tenant has already lost their home.” In the same blog post, Douglas Kwan, Executive Director of Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario (ACTO), is quoted as saying, “municipal bylaws are designed to prevent bad-faith renovictions from occurring in the first place.” 

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‍Security of tenure prevents unlawful tenant displacement

Under the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), Ontario tenants have security of tenure, meaning they cannot be evicted unless there’s a valid legal reason and an order from the LTB. Security of tenure is the foundation on which residential leases are built. It is widely recognized as the ultimate protection against unlawful displacement, harassment, and violations of housing rights. It is preventive and requires landlords seeking vacant possession to demonstrate that it is genuinely needed. 

Further, security of tenure provides housing stability and preserves affordable rental housing. It empowers tenants by giving them control over decisions about whether to move or remain in their homes, while supporting the City's Housing and Homelessness Plan, the Anti-Racism Strategy, and Women and Gender Equity Strategy. Nothing in a city renoviction bylaw could match security of tenure.‍

‍In the context of renovictions, security of tenure means that tenants who receive an N13 notice have the right to remain in their homes until the LTB has held a hearing and issued an eviction order. The same principle applies when a landlord asks a tenant to move out without serving an N13 notice. Simply put, tenants already have the power to tell their landlords, “No, I’m not moving out. I’ll wait for an LTB hearing where you will need to prove vacant possession is needed.” The real issue isn’t about a lack of rights, but a lack of awareness that those rights already exist.‍

‍Tenant advocates will say a bylaw is still needed because some tenants, including seniors, people with disabilities, and newcomers, aren’t aware of their right to remain in their units, and that some landlords intimidate and harass tenants until they move out. Those are fair points. However, tenants needing help with an N13 notice or their rights can contact one of Ontario’s seventy-nine community legal clinics, the LTB, ATHO, Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO), JusticeNet, their city councillor, and local tenant organizations. ‍

‍Over the years, the city has spent significant time and money on a manufactured crisis that does not exist. Instead of creating yet another bylaw, city councillors should direct their efforts toward a tenant rights education program focused on security of tenure, ensuring tenants understand their right to remain in their homes until the LTB determines otherwise.