N.S. records 86 renoviction applications; advocates fear many others uncounted

Tenants are becoming increasingly worried about renovictions in many major Canadian cities, and tenant advocates warn it's difficult to understand the true scope of the issue without proper tracking. 

Since lifting a temporary ban on renovictions in March 2022, Nova Scotia has been tracking applications to its Residential Tenancies Program involving renoviction disputes between tenants and landlords.

A "renoviction" occurs when a landlord forces residents to leave a building so it can be renovated, then rented to new tenants for higher prices. 

There are provisions in many provinces' tenancy laws for necessary renovations, but some tenants have said those laws are being abused. 

Between January 1 and October 16, Nova Scotia recorded 86 renoviction applications involving tenants who contest their landlord's wish to end the lease. 

But Amanda Salsman's renoviction will never be counted among those numbers. 

"That's sad, because there's probably more people out there like me," she said. She has friends and relatives who are struggling with their own housing challenges. 

"It can happen. It happened to me," she said. 

In January, Salsman and her husband received a letter from their landlord telling them to quit their duplex in Dartmouth, N.S., due to "substantial renovations." 

At the time Nova Scotia's renoviction ban was still in place, but their landlord made it clear he would apply to Residential Tenancies to evict them after the ban was lifted. 

"At first I panicked," Salsman said. She feels fortunate that she learned of a rental flat owned by a relative that became available around the same time. 

"I snatched it right up. I mean, he didn't even have to repaint it from the previous owners. 'I'll do it myself,' I said to him," she said. Salsman and her husband accepted their landlord's offer to waive a month of rent and moved out. 

Their rent increased from $750 for their old three-bedroom duplex to $1,000 for their new two-bedroom flat, but she feels the price is reasonable given other places she saw on the market. 

Salsman and her husband did consider contesting the renoviction notice, and her husband called Residential Tenancies to ask about their options. Tenants and landlords alike have criticized that process as unhelpful and lacking teeth.