Residential Licensing Program

Residential Licensing Program:
The by-law is set to come into effect on March 1, 2010.

Council approved (13/17 ) a rental residential licensing program. The Program specifically and only targets: ‘rental structures containing four or less rental units and converted dwellings’. Please note this program will not apply to apartment buildings, stacked townhouses, or townhouses. The intention of the by-law is to ensure that the health and safety of all the tenants are met, and that tenants are provided with essential services (such as heating and water). Additionally, the by-law strives to see that rental premises do not create a nuisance to surrounding neighbours and residential communities.

You might be wondering how all this will work?

Landlords who own property with four rental units or less, or who own converted dwellings will be required to apply for a license from the City of London to continue their rental business. To apply landlords will complete a checklist provided by the City to ensure that all property standards and regulations are met on the property. The City of London ’s by-law enforcement officers will perform random inspections to make sure the property does indeed meet standards. The by-law (aside from inspections) provides other ways which safeguard against falsely completed checklists and applications by landlords. One such method will be the use of duplicate checklists signed by the tenants of that property.

Here are some examples of what would be on the checklist that landlords would fill out;
Roofs are in good solid condition:
Foundation is strong and stable:
No major cracks in walls:
No signs of visible mould:
Etc.

As always any increase in rent above the guidelines set out by the Landlord and Tenant Board of Ontario, must be approved by that agency first. Only an “extraordinary” increase in taxes or fees from a municipality can be claimed as a legitimate reason to increase rent. Please note the cost to landlords is $25 per building

This by-law has come about through lengthy consultation with all stakeholders. The By-law has been amended considerably because of the consultation. Unfortunately many landlords posted inaccurate information about the by-law and this created panic and confusion for many. If you have any further questions please call me.