Letter threatens Mississauga residents with eviction if rent is not paid on April 1st

[Charlemagne]

Letter threatens some Mississauga residents with eviction if rent is not paid on April 1 amid pandemic

Miriam Katawazi

Multi-Platform Writer, CTV News Toronto

@MiriamKatawazi Contact

Published Friday, March 27, 2020 7:46PM EDT

TORONTO -- A letter threatening to file eviction notices if rent is not paid on time was sent to residents living in a not-for-profit housing complex in Mississauga earlier this week amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The letter written by the Affordable Property Management, a company that provides property management services to residential buildings in Ontario, was sent to tenants living at the Shalimar International Housing Corporation Inc. complex on Wednesday.

The letter obtained by CTV News Toronto said that if rent is not received on the first day of the month, a N4 notice to "end a tenancy early for non-payment of rent" will be issued.

“We understand the situation of COVID-19, however we would like to inform you that your rent has to be paid on the first day of each month in complete amount,” the notice sent out Wednesday stated. “If you are facing any difficulties in paying your rent, you should contact the Region of Peel for any assistance that might be required.”

The N4 notice is described by the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board as the “first step in evicting a tenant for non-payment of rent.” The board advises landlords that if they do not wish to evict a tenant but want to make an order for rent then another form is available.

After contacted by CTV News Toronto Friday, Affordable Property Management, which provides services to over 2,500 units of residential housing in Toronto, York Region, Peel Region and Durham Region, said that the notice was sent in error.

The spokesperson said that evictions will not be taking place and that the letter to residents should not have been “written the way it was.” Another letter was sent out Friday stating that no one would be evicted from the complex.

A tenant, who did not want to be identified, said he does not believe that the notice was sent by mistake, and said he's received aggressive notices before requesting rent payment.

He said he tried to contact the management office of the building but no one picked up his calls.

“A lot of people have not been working two to three weeks, and we’re all working on minimum wage and we’re all worried about how we are going to pay our rent even for this month,” he said. “Everyone has been feeling very anxious over the past few days.”

The tenant said he got the new notice Friday stating that no evictions will take place but it urged residents to make a payment.

Last week, the Ontario Government announced that it will temporarily stop issuing new eviction orders due to COVID-19 and will halt the enforcement of evictions scheduled for this week.

Several municipalities and health officials have urged landlords and building corporations to help tenants who are facing financial uncertainty due to the virus.

CTV News Toronto contacted Shalimar International Housing Corporation Inc., which is listed as a not-for-profit corporation, but has not yet received a response.

A spokesperson for The Region of Peel told CTV News Toronto that it has received confirmation from the non-profit housing provider that there will be no evictions at this time.

“The region has reached out to all non-profit housing providers on postponing evictions during the COVID situation as per provincial direction, ” the spokesperson said.

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/mobile/letter-threatens-some-mississauga-residents-with-eviction-if-rent-is-not-paid-on-april-1-amid-pandemic-1.4872012

 

[shack]

After contacted by CTV News Toronto Friday, Affordable Property Management, which provides services to over 2,500 units of residential housing in Toronto, York Region, Peel Region and Durham Region, said that the notice was sent in error.

The spokesperson said that evictions will not be taking place and that the letter to residents should not have been “written the way it was.” Another letter was sent out Friday stating that no one would be evicted from the complex.

In light of that, aside of an attempt to sensationalize things, there was no need to start this thread.

 

[Charlemagne]

In light of that, aside of an attempt to sensationalize things, there was no need to start this thread.

I think the error was suddenly realized due to bad publicity.

 

[shack]

I think the error was suddenly realized due to bad publicity.

Quite possibly but your headline gives no indication that they backed off. Based on only the title, one can only assume that they are prepared to proceed which is more interesting than backing down.

 

[John Henry]

I think the error was suddenly realized due to bad publicity.

It wasn't an error . They meant it . That's what these companies do . They don't care about people . They want their money period . They thought they could pull a fast one on the renters . Scare them into paying .

Once caught they say Oh it was a mistake . Really who authorized all of those letters to be sent out . Did the post office sneak in and just take those letters so it could mail them . Someone had to say yes go ahead and print those letters and have them sent out . Many companies think that the public are very stupid . This time the company got caught . Their excuse ... it was a mistake . The mistake was they got caught . What else is new .

Same with that store jacking up the price of hand sanitizer . Same bullshit . It was a mistake . Yea right .

 

[explorerzip]

It wasn't an error . They meant it . That's what these companies do . They don't care about people . They want their money period . They thought they could pull a fast one on the renters . Scare them into paying .

Once caught they say Oh it was a mistake . Really who authorized all of those letters to be sent out . Did the post office sneak in and just take those letters so it could mail them . Someone had to say yes go ahead and print those letters and have them sent out . Many companies think that the public are very stupid . This time the company got caught . Their excuse ... it was a mistake . The mistake was they got caught . What else is new .

Same with that store jacking up the price of hand sanitizer . Same bullshit . It was a mistake . Yea right .

Exactly. It would take incompetence at all levels of a company to send a letter like this and not expect a backlash.

 

[The Oracle]

I think the error was suddenly realized due to bad publicity.

It wasn't an error . They meant it . That's what these companies do . They don't care about people . They want their money period . They thought they could pull a fast one on the renters . Scare them into paying .

Once caught they say Oh it was a mistake . Really who authorized all of those letters to be sent out . Did the post office sneak in and just take those letters so it could mail them . Someone had to say yes go ahead and print those letters and have them sent out . Many companies think that the public are very stupid . This time the company got caught . Their excuse ... it was a mistake . The mistake was they got caught . What else is new .

Same with that store jacking up the price of hand sanitizer . Same bullshit . It was a mistake . Yea right .

Yeah the mistake was that they were exposed.

 

[legmann]

It wasn't an error . They meant it . That's what these companies do . They don't care about people . They want their money period . They thought they could pull a fast one on the renters . Scare them into paying .

Once caught they say Oh it was a mistake. Many companies think that the public are very stupid . This time the company got caught . Their excuse ... it was a mistake . The mistake was they got caught . What else is new .

Same with that store jacking up the price of hand sanitizer . Same bullshit . It was a mistake . Yea right .

Agreed.

 

[TeeJay]

You need to miss more than 1 months rent to start an eviction process
These people were not paying long before anyone had heard of the Coronavirus

It wasn't an error . They meant it . That's what these companies do . They don't care about people . They want their money period . They thought they could pull a fast one on the renters . Scare them into paying .

I hope they do mean it
Crazy people think they can get away without paying bills

Even EI has been sped up so most of these deadbeats should have cheques in hand
Cheques that come out of our tax dollars

 

[rhuarc29]

That's what these companies do . They don't care about people . They want their money period . They thought they could pull a fast one on the renters . Scare them into paying .

I don't really agree with this mindset. Asking landlords to just accept that they won't be paid, but still be expected to provide lodging is like asking you to continue working, but accept that you won't receive a paycheck.
These are extraordinary times, and I think it's commendable when people and organizations are doing what they can to help out people in need, but I won't condemn landlords for asking for rent money.

 

[Greytop19]

Are people this broke and living pay check to pay check ? Or this is a way to take advantage of the crisis and not pay bills and rent. Glad I am not renting homes, apartments etc.
What happens if this goes on for a a long time ? Eventually all the back rent, car payments, mortgage payments, credit card debt will have to be paid.

 

[John Henry]

Are people this broke and living pay check to pay check ? Or this is a way to take advantage of the crisis and not pay bills and rent. Glad I am not renting homes, apartments etc.
What happens if this goes on for a a long time ? Eventually all the back rent, car payments, mortgage payments, credit card debt will have to be paid.

Yes . Millions of people live paycheck to paycheck . People know that bills have to be paid sooner or later . The thing is they don't have the money to do so right now .

 

[John Henry]

I don't really agree with this mindset. Asking landlords to just accept that they won't be paid, but still be expected to provide lodging is like asking you to continue working, but accept that you won't receive a paycheck.
These are extraordinary times, and I think it's commendable when people and organizations are doing what they can to help out people in need, but I won't condemn landlords for asking for rent money.

No problem in asking for money but it's the way they did it . Threatening to kick them out with the first time of trouble is not the way to do it . Many people haven't missed a payment and they are now being threatened . I'd be pissed off if I paid my rent on time every month and got a letter like that .

As for working and not being paid . That's what Trump did when he shut down the government a while back . Landlords will sooner or later will be paid their money . Maybe they could kick these people out and find new tenants who have money to pay for rent . Good luck with that these days .

 

[sp free]

If it’s a “not for profit” building I think you need to read between the lines.

Probably most people in there are already living off the government, will continue receiving whatever assistance they’re on, and may just be the types that would take advantage of any perceived “right” to not pay their rent due to current circumstances.

The management, knowing who their tenants are, sent out a reminder to pay or gtfo.

I don’t really see much wrong with it. It’s a sensational headline and article written to provoke SJW outrage.

 

[Jasmine Raine]

If it’s a “not for profit” building I think you need to read between the lines.

Probably most people in there are already living off the government, will continue receiving whatever assistance they’re on, and may just be the types that would take advantage of any perceived “right” to not pay their rent due to current circumstances.

The management, knowing who their tenants are, sent out a reminder to pay or gtfo.

I don’t really see much wrong with it. It’s a sensational headline and article written to provoke SJW outrage.

I think this is it. If it is NOP housing, tenants are most likely on Rent Geared to Income and on programs like OW and ODSP. In those case, those programs are paying their rent. That rental amount given to them on their monthly check should go to the rent, not held onto like they won free money.

I have said this before, all social assistance based programs should be paying landlords directly. Same with Hydro companies, gas companies, and water companies.This way they are always taken care of and the remainder of what they are support to get, goes to the person. Let them squander their personal portion of that money how they what, but at least ensure the main needs are paid for.

Reason being, many of these people are dealing with mental illness, addiction, etc. They are often not able to manage bills properly and will often find themselves in worse financial states then need be if these programs helped more. I know they can do it, I helped a friend get it set up. She was always behind on her bills because when checks came in she spent it like crazy. Now she can do what she wants with her portion of the money, but the other portion meant for rent gets paid and the threat of losing housing is gone.

Sorry little off topic rant.....

 

[fall]

I am a landlord, so, let me explain a bit how it works. If someone does not pay a rent on time, I can give them N4 "notice to end the tenancy earlier for non-payment the rent", after which tenants have 14 days to pay the rent. If they do not, I can apply to the tenancy board to have the hearing and get a ruling for eviction. It can take a couple of month (sometime many month if the tenant postpones the process as much as he can by producing a "sick" notes for the day of hearing). After that it will take another month for the police to actually evict the tenant. All this time the tenant pays nothing. Yes, I can get a court order to collect all past rent, but it will be almost impossible to collect from somebody without official steady job.

Now, during the pandemic, there will be no evictions. However, any reasonable landlord will issue N4 notices the next day after non-payment the rent and apply to the tenancy board as soon as possible just to get his place in line for the hearing day because, after the eviction ban will be lifted, the line will be huge and I do not want somebody living in my house for a year without paying. If tenants cannot pay now - negotiate the payment plan with the landlord, show him how you will come up with the money after the pandemic ends, pay as much as you can, borrow to pay (landlord is not a bank, if you have credit card that is not maxed out yet - borrow and pay the high interest, because it is legal borrowing why non-payment the rent is not legal).

 

[fall]

No problem in asking for money but it's the way they did it . Threatening to kick them out with the first time of trouble is not the way to do it . Many people haven't missed a payment and they are now being threatened . I'd be pissed off if I paid my rent on time every month and got a letter like that .

So, let's say you are in this situation: you always pay on time but now you do not have money and it is April 1. What will you do? Paying rent is your responsibility, it should not be the responsibility of the landlord to collect rent from you. If you cannot pay rent, it is you job to proposed a solution to the landlord and such solution should not be in the form "I do not have money, I'll pay you later when I can": it is your job to show that you, actually will be able to (and will be willing to) pay such rent later. I agree, such message from landlord came a few days earlier, but, my guess, it was just because of the type of people who live in that housing and the fact that they get payed today while the rent due is tomorrow (so, basically, the message is: do not spend all your money today, you have a rent due tomorrow)

 

[Smallcock]

What happens if this goes on for a a long time ? Eventually all the back rent, car payments, mortgage payments, credit card debt will have to be paid.

Exactly. See, I accept that these are extraordinary times and I understand delaying or deferring rent. But I believe that some of the least informed and/or bad apples will think this is an opportunity to NOT pay and that somehow the government is going to get them off from owing rent payments. That's not the case. Any rent not paid now only adds to the balance owed in the future. It's still owed... it's just payable at a later date. But I suspect plenty of renters will start splurging money on other things believing they're off the hook for rent and will be in for an unpleasant surprise a few months from now when they're hit with a massive rent bill for all previous months.

Landlords already know that even if the bank or government allows for deferrals of mortgage and property taxes, that those entities are going to demand full payment of any balance owing sooner or later. Plus interest.

 

[drewstar]

I am a landlord, so, let me explain a bit how it works. If someone does not pay a rent on time, I can give them N4 "notice to end the tenancy earlier for non-payment the rent", after which tenants have 14 days to pay the rent. If they do not, I can apply to the tenancy board to have the hearing and get a ruling for eviction. It can take a couple of month (sometime many month if the tenant postpones the process as much as he can by producing a "sick" notes for the day of hearing). After that it will take another month for the police to actually evict the tenant. All this time the tenant pays nothing. Yes, I can get a court order to collect all past rent, but it will be almost impossible to collect from somebody without official steady job.

Now, during the pandemic, there will be no evictions. However, any reasonable landlord will issue N4 notices the next day after non-payment the rent and apply to the tenancy board as soon as possible just to get his place in line for the hearing day because, after the eviction ban will be lifted, the line will be huge and I do not want somebody living in my house for a year without paying. If tenants cannot pay now - negotiate the payment plan with the landlord, show him how you will come up with the money after the pandemic ends, pay as much as you can, borrow to pay (landlord is not a bank, if you have credit card that is not maxed out yet - borrow and pay the high interest, because it is legal borrowing why non-payment the rent is not legal).

Agreed. The problem with the message today is that the message seems to be “dont pay april 1st regardless”. Its an extraordinary time for sure, but landlords or even homeowners in general like myself dont suddenly get free mortgage deferrals without penalty (interest and lowered credit rating). Maintenance at my condo, utility costs, property tax, mortgage payments still come on time. There should be open communication between renter and landlord on arrangements if the renter cannot pay in the current climate, there is no free ride in this world. And if a renter is fortunate enough to have a landlord willing to waive some or all of the rent for however long, that shouldnt be considered an “expectation” for every landlord.

 

[Jasmine Raine]

Agreed. The problem with the message today is that the message seems to be “dont pay april 1st regardless”. Its an extraordinary time for sure, but landlords or even homeowners in general like myself dont suddenly get free mortgage deferrals without penalty (interest and lowered credit rating). Maintenance at my condo, utility costs, property tax, mortgage payments still come on time. There should be open communication between renter and landlord on arrangements if the renter cannot pay in the current climate, there is no free ride in this world. And if a renter is fortunate enough to have a landlord willing to waive some or all of the rent for however long, that shouldnt be considered an “expectation” for every landlord.

I have seen tweets about support a “Rent strike”. I don’t get it. It seems like some are using this to just skip out.

I understand that some people just simply can’t, but there are bunch who are misusing this and it is unfair for landlords to have to suffer.