This is the first of a four-part blog series focusing on landlords’ obligations with respect to maintenance and repairs. At one time or another, every tenant has required repairs to be carried out on their apartment, and often gets frustrated when requests feel ignored. This series is written from the perspective of the tenant and the remedies available to them under the law. Don’t worry landlords — a future post will cover things from your perspective too.
In Ontario, residential tenancies are governed by the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), specifically Section 20, which states that a landlord is responsible for providing and maintaining a residential complex, including the rental units in it, in a good state of repair and fit for habitation, and for complying with health, safety, housing and maintenance standards — even if the tenant was aware of a state of non-repair before entering into the tenancy agreement.
If you feel your landlord is in breach of Section 20, you can file an application with the Landlord and Tenant Board (the Board) under Subsection 29(1) of the RTA. If the Board determines a breach occurred, Section 30 provides several available remedies, including ordering the landlord to carry out repairs, an abatement of rent, compensation for damaged property, or in the most egregious cases, general damages for breach of the tenancy agreement.
You can get more information on filing an application with the Board at tribunalsontario.ca/ltb/.
Before rushing to file an application, there are many things to consider — many of which we’ll cover in the next three parts of this series, including what actually meets the threshold to breach Section 20, and how to choose your apartment and landlord carefully to avoid maintenance disputes altogether.