1 Bedroom Apartments Ottawa

Posts Tagged ‘Tenants’

Being a landlord requires management skills, sales skills, and negotiation skills as you are constantly working with people (your tenants). One sensitive subject for both the landlord and tenant can be “How much is the rent going to be?” Once the tenant is living there, raising the rent is important but can be a delicate decision.
Keep in mind that you must keep your investment real estate business growing. To that end, you must keep your rents increasing at pace with the market and your rising costs. Raising the rent is simply part of managing your business smartly. Done correctly, it can be an easy and stress-free process.
Although every rental situation and each tenant/landlord relationship is different, I think raising the rent depends upon a couple items:
1. Is the tenant paying a fair market rent? If the rent is currently lower than market, it may be easy to raise it slightly as most tenants will realize they are getting a good deal where they are currently living. Plus they will not want to take on the added expense and time of moving.
2. When making your decision, ask yourself: “If the tenant decides to move because you are increasing the rent, can you re-rent the apartment for minimal cost and minimal or no vacant months?” If you increase the rent by $50 and the tenant decides to leave and you are left with a vacant $1200 per month apartment, was the increase worth it?
3. Consider that if you are increasing the rent in the spring, generally you can be more aggressive because it will be easier to re-rent that apartment in May than in December (at lease in colder climates).
4. If you are actively managing your lease renewals, you must be talking with the tenant 60-90 days prior to the lease renewal about their plans and any rent increases. This will give you time to re-rent the unit if the tenant chooses not not to renew.
5. Have the rent increase conversation with them verbally or in person. This will give you the opportunity to read their reaction to the increase. It is also more difficult for them to say no to your face.
6. If the tenant is hesitant about the increase, immediately see if they will accept the increase if you set the lease renewal to 18 months (locking their rent for that time) in exchange for the rent increase. This is actually an even better win for you as the landlord, as you have just locked them in as tenant for 6 extra months (and you got your rent increase).
7. When talking with your tenant, Use your best sales techniques to show them why they should both stay and accept the rent increase. At the end of the day, be honest. If the increase is related to increases in your costs, explain how your costs have changed. Most tenants can understand that taxes, insurance, or utilities do go up.
8. Lastly, if they are a great tenant consider simply leaving the rent at the same amount for another year. I would, however, let them know that you thought about a rent increase but “because they are such great tenants, you have decided to not change the rent for another year”. This will set up the idea in their minds that you did them a favor and will get them to expect a rent increase next year.
Having your rents keep pace with your expenses and market rents is an critical part of running investment real estate business. Although it can seem intimidating at first, if you just take your time and think through the process with each tenant, it can be a simple process when lease renewal time comes around.

On January 31, 2007, the Government of Ontario brought into effect the new Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), replacing the old Tenant Protection Act that had been in effect since 1998. As a renter, perhaps the most important thing you can do is to simply know your rights by understanding what the RTA is all about and how it affects you as a tenant.

The new legislation applies to most types of residential rental properties in the province and outlines exactly how landlord-tenant relations will be governed. This includes protecting residential tenants from unlawful rent increases and evictions, establishing a framework for the regulation of residential rents and balancing the rights and responsibilities of residential landlords and tenants in order to better resolve disputes.

RTA Trumps All

First, it is important to know that anything in your tenancy agreement that conflicts with the RTA is not valid. All limits and stipulations outlined in the RTA for areas such as rent increases and eviction procedures must be followed, even if your tenancy agreement says otherwise. For example, it is illegal for a landlord to require post-dated cheques from a tenant, even if the rental agreement says they are required.

Landlord and Tenant Board

The Landlord and Tenant Board is the new name for the Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal, the governing body that settles disputes between landlords and tenants and enforces their rights. Both tenants and landlords can make applications to the Board, and if you and your landlord cannot agree on how to work out a problem, the Board will hold a hearing to resolve the situation.

Rent Increases

Although rent increases are carefully controlled by the RTA, before a tenant moves in, landlords can charge whatever they want for a vacant unit. However, after you move in, your landlord must wait at least 12 months before raising your rent, and any increases after that must be at least 12 months apart. Your landlord must also give you at least 90 days written notice before your rent increases.

These rent increases must follow the annual rent guidelines established by the provincial government. For 2007, the government determined that landlords can increase the rent by a maximum of 2.6 percent. To raise your rent by more than this guideline, your landlord must apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board for permission. The Board can allow an above-guideline increase only for:

Privacy

According to the RTA, your landlord can enter your home without telling you ahead of time only if there is an emergency or if your landlord gives you cleaning services. Otherwise, your landlord must give you notice in writing 24 hours ahead of time and can only enter your place between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., even if it is to do repairs or inspections. 

Once you have given notice to move out or agreed to terminate your rental agreement, your landlord can enter your place to show it to a new tenant as long as your landlord makes a reasonable effort to let you know when the showing will take place.

Moving Out and Giving Notice

Believe it or not, you do not have to move out just because your lease expires – your tenancy automatically continues on a month-to-month basis until you or your landlord does something to end it. Not renewing your lease at the end of the agreement can actually be ideal if you know you want to stay in the place you are renting but you’re not sure if you want to stay there for another full year.

If you want to move out, you can provide your landlord written notice giving the exact date you want your tenancy to end. If you pay your rent by the month, you must give your landlord at least 60 days written notice.

Evictions

The first step in the eviction process is that your landlord must give you written notice explaining the reasons why your landlord wants you to leave. Among the reasons your landlord might cite include:

For More Information …

This article only scratches the surface of the lengthy Residential Tenancies Act, which also contains detailed rules about subletting, maintenance and eviction hearings, as well as outlining exactly how the legislation applies to non-traditional rental units such as mobile home parks, subsidized housing and care homes.

This article is not intended to give tenants or landlords concrete legal advice. If you have any questions or concerns about the Residential Tenancies Act, or if you would like a copy of the Act, please contact the Landlord and Tenant Board.