Advice on Tenant situation(Ontario)

[DrPanda]

Good Day need some advice from all, its a bit of a long story but let me try to summarize it to the best of my ability.

I had a tenant that signed(husband only) 1 year lease for $1300/mth starting Aug 1st 2009. out of that $1300, $50 was for a couch and love seat but not mentioned in the lease.

He and his wife got separated as of Jan 2010 and he has not been living there but has been paying me the rent from the advice from his lawyer to show good in his efforts to gain custody of the kids. In April/May his exwife left and went back to Newfld with the kids and since then no one has been living there.

I have never had any interaction with his ex everything has been through him since he has been paying the rent.
His Ex just sent me a mail stating that she is looking to come back and would like to stay in the home again and move to a month to month payment since the lease expires and also she wants to pay $1250 as $50 was for the couch/love seat.

Now I don`t want her there as I know she doesn`t have a good job and probably would struggle to make payments.

So can I legally reset the lease and put it for 1 year, as for a credit report and increase the rent?

Need some advice on this matter.

Thanks!

 

[thejules]

Dr. Panda, If it was me, I would not include any side deals for purchases of furniture or any other items. Sales of goods & services, and Landlord and Tenant matters are covered by two different Provincial Statutes (In Ontario). If you`re not comfortable with renting to the ex-wife, then don`t. However, I Would suggest that she may have support payments coming in from the ex-husband that may more than cover the rent. But that`s just been my experience. I would suggest that you Find out what the ex-husband`s intentions are, & take it from there.

 

[Berubeland]

She`s not the tenant the husband is. He is allowed to have any guests he wants. I suggest you talk to the tenant. I would also suggest that even if the tenancy becomes month to month that the husband be the one on the lease. You have no obligation to remove him from the lease or change the lease in any way. This way you have someone who is responsible on the hook for the obligation.

 

[invst4profit]

If the wife lived in the apartment with the husband from Aug 2009 till Jan 2010 then till April/May with the husband paying the rent she is legally your tenant the same as the husband regardless of whose name is on the lease. In Ontario this is the law.
When she left in April did you have her sign anything indicating she was vacating and terminating her tenancy?
Did the husband continue to pay rent up to today even though no one lived there. If so why?

If the rent is being paid and you have no proof the wife terminated her tenancy you could have problems if she knows her legal rights in Ontario because if this is in fact the case she is still your tenant even though she left and has now returned. She took a vacation and is now back home again.

Legally she can start paying the rent June 1st and you are stuck with her but it sounds like she may not know her legal rights. You could simply try saying no and hope she goes away quietly.

 

[Nir]

Dr. Panda,
The wife lived there illegaly after husband left and if she returns you can have her evicted within less than a week by involving the police. this does not even require involving LTB.
The reason is she is not on the lease AND the person who is on the lease no longer lives there!
HOWEVER, you would need to communicate with the police in a very professional and specific way with tact that in 99% of the cases only an experienced lawyer or paralegal would be able to do, not you or me.
On the other hand, you did not provide a good enough reason in my opinion to suspect she will be a terrible tenant. the fact that her husband paid her rent is a good thing not a sign she is a bad tenant. so.. let her "stay"/give her a chance and you are right use the opportunity and sign a new 1 year lease with her from today and yes pull her consumer report! however, don`t increase her rent but rather reduce it by $50 unless you think your couch is a tenant.
GL

 

[Al Verwey]

QUOTE (investmart @ May 22 2010, 10:26 PM) The wife lived there illegaly after husband left and if she returns you can have her evicted within less than a week by involving the police. This does not even require involving LTB.

The police do not carry out evictions in Ontario - the Sheriff`s Office does and then only after an eviction order is issued by the LTB AND the tenant does not leave by the date required on the order, a process that could take weeks, but more likely months.

If you are suggesting that the police would treat her as a simple trespasser, that is an extremely long shot. More likely, the police would say to make an application to the LTB to evict an unauthorized occupant.

Al Verwey
Penta V Holdings
Newmarket, ON

 

[invst4profit]

Unfortunately the fact that the husband left is irrelevant as he did continue to pay the rent and the wife did continue to live there.
In Ontario the name on the lease is not what determines who is a tenant. In Ontario if someone lives in LLs property, with the LLs knowledge, and the LL takes no action to evict within 60 day of knowing then under the law that person becomes a tenant with all the legal rights as the person who`s name is on the lease. This is the law.
At the time the lease was signed by the husband the LL knew they were renting to a husband, wife and kids. As such on day one they were all legal tenants.

Given the circumstances if the husband agrees with the wife to have her start writing the rent checks instead of him no adjudicator in Ontario will have the authority under the Ontario RTA to evict the wife.