Whitby Council has approved a motion to protect rental housing stock in the town by making it more difficult for landlords to evict tenants or demolish rental housing units.
The motion approved on February 3 directs town staff to investigate feasibility, benefits, and cost of adopting a rental unit renovation by-law. This by-law would require landlords who issue an eviction notice to a tenant to demolish, repair, or renovate a unit to apply to the town within a defined timeframe for a renovation licence prior to starting work.
The motion seeks to protect affordable housing units by ensuring tenants understand their right to move back into the unit once renovations are complete. It also proposes requiring landlords, for the duration of the renovation, to secure their tenant temporary arrangements that are comparable to the tenant’s current unit or provide the tenant compensation in lieu.
The motion further directs staff to investigate a by-law and permitting program related to the demolition or conversion to non-residential rental units of six or more residential rental units.
The motion states that Canada is facing a housing shortage with high demand for rentals and a limited supply of affordable housing. It also refers to ‘renovictions’—a practice where landlords initiate evictions under the guise of major renovations or improvements—as a problem across Ontario leading to housing instability.
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