City committee to vote on proposed ‘renoviction’ bylaw next week

Ottawa City Hall is seen in this undated file photo. (CTV News Ottawa)

Councillors on Ottawa’s planning and housing committee will be voting on a proposed “renoviction” bylaw for the city to deter landlords from making bad faith evictions.

Documents prepared for the July 8 meeting show the proposed bylaw would require landlords to obtain a licence from the city before submitting an eviction notice to their tenants. The eviction notice would be required to come with a city-produced “eviction education guide” to inform tenants of their rights. Landlords would then have seven days from the time they issue the notice to apply to the city for a rental renovation licence and provide information related to the rental unit, the building permit, the eviction notice, and proof that the eviction education guide was delivered.

“Bad faith evictions for renovations or repairs refer to instances where the provincial eviction process is intentionally not followed or used with the intent of replacing the existing tenant with those who would pay higher rent after the work is completed, failing to permit the tenant to return at their current rent as required under the provincial process when the tenant has indicated as such,” a report for the committee meeting says.

“Often in these situations, the rent is significantly lower than the market average and if the tenant cannot return, it results in the loss of affordable housing and can cause significant personal consequences.”

City staff say there would be no fee for the licence, adding that an additional cost might deter necessary renovations or repairs made in good faith, and could also provide additional incentives for landlords to avoid the process through other means, such as “cash for keys” evictions. Instead, landlords who violate the bylaw would be subject to fines.

The estimated cost to implement the bylaw initially, including developing the multi-lingual eviction education guide, would be $55,500, to be covered through existing budgets, staff say.

Council directed staff in 2024 to assess the feasibility of a municipal renoviction bylaw. Staff initially recommended against a municipal bylaw, saying amendments introduced to the provincial Residential Tenancies Act this year enhanced tenant protections and addressed several key concerns.

Somerset Coun. Ariel Troster brought forward a motion in early June to compel staff to present the draft bylaw to the committee and allow councillors to vote on it.

The bylaw coming before the committee next week aims to direct landlords through the proper provincial channels, staff said.

“Municipal bylaws cannot prohibit evictions. Instead, the goal of the draft bylaw was to direct landlords and tenants towards the provincial process and to provide municipal oversight that the provincial process is being followed,” staff said. “While the draft bylaw does not directly conflict with the strengthened provincial framework, the provincial changes substantially address concerns regarding proper notification and facilitating the right to return, which were also primary goals under the draft bylaw.”

Staff say it is difficult to assess the number of renovictions that take place in Ottawa.

“There is an annual average of 31 notices of eviction for renovations or repairs filed with the Landlord and Tenant Board. However, evictions also occur where an eviction notice was never issued or never filed with the Landlord and Tenant Board. Based on consultations and a media scan, staff identified a possible 230 such instances across 40 addresses since 2020,” staff said.

“While these may not always represent bad faith instances, they may result in tenant displacement without the protections offered under the provincial eviction process, including the right to return.”

This comes as the proportion of Ottawa residents renting their homes is expected to rise. Data shared by staff show that more than one third (36 per cent) of Ottawa’s households were rentals in 2024, with the proportion of renters expected to increase to 43 per cent of all households by 2035.

If approved, the proposed bylaw would come into effect on Jan. 1, 2027.

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