Their rent went up more than twice Ontario's standard allowable increase. They felt 'coerced' to accept it
CBC
Tenants in a midtown lowrise say they've been hit with a major rent increase and that a corresponding boost services promised by their landlord never materialized.
About 40 tenants at a building on Mallory Gardens in the Yonge-St. Clair Avenue area were told in September their rents would be going up by roughly five per cent in 2026 — more than twice the province's allowable increase, set at 2.5 per cent this year.
Wendy Morrow, a tenant organizer with the Federation of Metro Tenants Associations (FMTA) said the landlord — Westbury Rental Residences — applied to the province's Landlord and Tenant Board last year for an above guideline rent increase (AGI). The application was made on the grounds that the landlord had made improvements to the building in the past 18 months, she said.
"Most tenants told me they got nothing. In fact, they've had services removed," said Morrow.
CBC Toronto has reached out to Westbury for comment on this case but has not yet heard back from the company.
In its application, Westbury maintains it's added a new boiler and hot water system, among other things.
But tenants who spoke with CBC Toronto said hot water in their units continues to be unpredictable.
As well, the AGI application notes restoration work on the underground garage. But tenants say only one unit is allowed to use it.
"We've been hit with this massive rent increase in exchange for repairs to a garage we don't have access to and repairs to a boiler that still (provides) intermittent hot water," said Tory Woolcott, who has lived with her husband and small child in the building for about four years.
"If I'm going to give my kid a bath, it's a coin flip whether it's going to be warm or cold water that comes out."
The tenants took their concerns to the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) earlier this month and agreed to mediation. They now regret that move, saying they were told by the mediator at the end of a four-hour session that most of the landlord's rent increase request would be granted.
The tenants will now also have to pay back rent, since the AGI request is backdated to January 2024.
That decision has not yet been conveyed to the tenants in writing, but Morrow says they may have to simply accept the decision, as there's little room for appeal in mediation cases at the LTB.
The tenants, led by Woolcott and her husband Kean Soo, told CBC Toronto they felt rushed and pressured by board staff at the hearing.
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