May 10, 2016 - The Rental Board recently rendered a decision that will cause apartment owners to pause.
The judgment prohibits a Montreal owner from increasing rent by $ 1,000 a month to recover a portion of the profits garnered by his tenant subletting online (Airbnb).
However, the board requires the tenant to submit to the owner a request for an authorization (15 days in advance), for each client to whom the apartment is sublet. The owner may refuse the right of occupation to some of them, for reasons he deems serious.
The administrative judge, Anne Mailfait, points out that no one is exempt from the obligation to inform the owner of the identity of subtenants. The judgment thus requires the tenant to "file a request for an authorization for each sub-let."
Li Quan Sheng, an individual living primarily in Toronto signed the lease for a rent of $ 1,770 per month. The owner wanted to raise the rent, after learning that the tenant rented the apartment for $ 120 a night.
The tenant contested the increase before the Board, asking instead for a reduction of $ 250 per month and $ 20,000 in damages. For its part, the company that manages the building asked for his expulsion.
In the end, the board described the increase as "abusive» and instead invited both parties to agree on a reasonable amount. The administrative judge ruled that the owner had acted illegally in imposing such an increase.
The Board also refused to award punitive damages to the tenant, as the latter admitted that had made very limited use of the dwelling for himself. In fact, he lives in Toronto most of the time. On the rare occasions he comes to Montreal, he lives in a house he owns in Beaconsfield. His apartment is essentially subleased through Airbnb.
The Corporation des propriétaires immobiliers du Quebec (the Quebec Corporation of Real Estate Owners) (CORPIQ) believes that the Board should have terminated the lease, particularly because the tenant uses the apartment for commercial and not residential purposes. "This is a tenant who makes a profit with property that does not belong to him," protested Hans Brouillette, spokesperson at CORPIQ.
Montreal, May 10, 2016
Source: La Presse
