CHAPTER 8: TENANT APPLICATIONS Emond Montgomery Publications 1

Chapter 8: Tenant Applications Types of Tenant Applications Breach of Maintenance Obligations Landlord Defences Practical Concerns Abatements Damages Tenant Rights Landlord Defences Application for a Rent Rebate Emond Montgomery Publications 2

Types of Tenant Applications There are seven types of tenant applications: Request for maintenance or an abatement of rent (Form T6) Complaint regarding tenant rights (Form T2) Request for a rent rebate (Form T1) Allegation that the landlord gave notice of termination in bad faith (Form T5) Request for a rent reduction as a result of the discontinuance of a service or facility or a reduction in municipal taxes (Form T3) Complaints regarding a landlord who has failed to comply with an agreement to increase rent above guideline (Form T4) allegations that a landlord failed to follow the proper rules when requiring the tenant to become responsible to pay for electricity or other utilities (Form T7) Emond Montgomery Publications 3

Breach of Maintenance Obligations The tenant can file an application (T6) with the board if he or she believes that the landlord failed to properly maintain the rental unit or residential complex There are seven remedies that the board may order These are set out in s. 30(1) of the RTA Emond Montgomery Publications 4

Landlord Defences Landlord defences to a tenant repair claim include showing that: the disrepair has been caused by the tenant and not by normal wear and tear they responded as quickly as they could, and if applicable that they were delayed in doing the repair The landlord may take the position that the defect claimed does not render the premises: in a bad state of repair unfit for habitation in violation of a standard Emond Montgomery Publications 5

Practical Concerns Tenants who undertake their own repairs run the risk of not being reimbursed for them The tenant should give the landlord written notice of a deadline by which to make the repair Tenants should undertake a repair only when: the repair is too serious to wait for an application to the board the repair must be made in order to minimize other damages Have the repair done by a professional in order to have an invoice for the work. The board can order the landlord to do specific repairs Emond Montgomery Publications 6

Abatements A tenant’s most common remedy for disrepair is an order for an abatement of rent The test to determine the proper amount of the abatement is that it is: “the difference between the fair value of the premises if they had been as they were supposed to be and the fair value of the premises as they were” The board can determine the amount of the abatement as a percentage of the rent Tenants should emphasize: the inconvenience that they have suffered the disruption in their normal lifestyle as a result of the disrepair Emond Montgomery Publications 7

Damages The different forms of damages are: general damages special damages punitive damages exemplary damages aggravated damages Emond Montgomery Publications 8

Tenant Rights A tenant can file a T2 application with the board if the landlord: has illegally entered the rental unit interfered with the tenant's reasonable enjoyment of the unit harassed the tenant There are six remedies that the board can order are set out in s. 31(1) of the RTA Emond Montgomery Publications 9

Landlord Defences The most effective landlord defence to a tenant harassment or illegal entry claim is to show that the alleged activities did not take place The landlord may also want to show that the alleged events where not: egregious repetitive expected to bother most people Emond Montgomery Publications 10

Application for a Rent Rebate A tenant, former tenant, or prospective tenant can apply to the board if they believe the landlord has: charged unlawful rent collected an illegal charge retained a rent deposit of more than one month failed to pay annual interest on the rent deposit failed to refund the rent deposit when required (s. 135) Only remedy available is the repayment of the money unlawfully charged or collected The tenant must bring evidence to prove that the landlord did not properly follow the RTA Emond Montgomery Publications 11