Over 100 Hamilton tenants face threat of eviction as landlord starts listing townhouses for sale

The for sale sign in front of Heather Mulryan's Hamilton townhouse is a constant source of dread. 

The 41-year-old single mom of two boys has rented her home on Hamilton's Mountain for 14 years but said she received a surprise letter from her landlord, DiCenzo Management, in April. 

The letter, delivered to all tenants, said the landlord will be selling the 36 units on Anna Capri Drive — and Mulryan's was among the first on the market.

Mulryan also learned for the first time that the townhouses, built in 1981, are actually condominiums, she said. DiCenzo Management said it's therefore allowed to sell each unit to individual buyers, rather than the complex as a whole to a landlord.

"After 40 years we have decided that the time has come to proceed with individual dwelling sales on a unit-by-unit basis," said the letter signed by president Anthony DiCenzo. 

"Rest assured that, should your unit be sold, you will receive a minimum of 60-days notice to vacate your unit."

Two days later, the for sale sign appeared on her front lawn, Mulryan said. 

Her unit is currently listed online for $584,900. 

"It's hard to cope thinking that any day I'm going to get a notice that somebody wants to buy my home and that's it, it's over for me," Mulryan said. "It's devastating."

Mulryan said she currently pays just over $1,000 a month for the three-bedroom, rent-controlled townhouse and knows that amount won't go far in the midst of today's affordable housing crisis. 

Even a one-bedroom apartment is out of her price range at $1,600 on average, according to rental listing site Zumper. 

Her neighbours, many of whom also have children, face similar financial constraints, Mulryan said. She's afraid not only her family but many of the other tenants will end up homeless. 

"The majority of us don't stay here because we love it," she said. "We stay here because it's all we can afford." 

DiCenzo Management, which is connected to local developer DiCenzo Homes, owns and rents out townhouses in two other surveys, on Upper Ottawa Street and Woodman Drive North. Both are also condominiums.