Rents in Ontario can be hiked 1.8 per cent in 2018 under new guidelines
The Ontario Ministry of Housing set the rate Friday based on the provincial consumer price index, which measures inflation.

Thetstar.com
By ROB FERGUSON
June 23, 2017

Tenants will face residential rent increases of no more than 1.8 per cent next year unless their landlords apply to authorities for more.

The Ontario Ministry of Housing set the rate Friday based on the provincial consumer price index, which measures inflation.

Another 250,000 tenants will be protected from “unreasonable” rent increases now that the Liberal government has, as part of housing reforms, extended rent control to buildings constructed since 1991, said MPP Cristina Martins (Davenport), parliamentary secretary to Housing Minister Chris Ballard.

Landlords who make improvements to their rental units can apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board for larger increases based on the amount of money they have spent, Martins noted.

“We know that a strong rental market in Ontario is one that balanced affordability with tenants with the right conditions for continued investments in rental properties by landlords,” she told reporters Friday.

“That’s why landlords who undertake certain capital repairs will still be able to apply for above guideline rent increases and landlords will still be able to set rent levels for new tenants.”

The rent increase cap does not apply to vacant units, social housing, nursing homes or commercial properties.

Rent controls were expanded by Premier Kathleen Wynne’s administration in April in response to the then-overheated housing market, where house prices and rents on units built after 1991 were skyrocketing.

Some tenants complained of being booted out of their apartments by landlords for personal reasons, such as moving a family member in, and then saw those units rented for hundreds more dollars a month.

Landlords evicting tenants for personal reasons will soon have to pay them a penalty to discourage capricious decisions to force tenants out.

“It will be taking place this summer,” said Martins.

There are about 1.2 million private rental units in Ontario.

Under Ontario law, annual rent increases can be no more than 2.5 per cent.