Dear Minister Flack,
Tenants in the purpose-built rental at 7 Jackes Avenue in Toronto have raised serious concerns about their landlord knowingly allowing long-term rental homes to be removed from the rental market and used as mid-term rentals.
Units that were previously two-bedroom apartments rented to tenants are now being advertised as four-bedroom rentals at inflated prices, offered exclusively on a short-term basis of 28 days or longer.
Since these rentals exceed the City of Toronto’s 28-day threshold, they fall into a regulatory grey area with no effective provincial oversight. The result is a loss of a valuable rental apartment, occupants have none of the rights enshrined in the Residential Tenancies Act, and there’s very little other tenants in the building can do to raise issues about the property.
What is happening at 7 Jackes Avenue is not an isolated case. Across Toronto and the GTHA, long-term rental units in investment properties, condominiums, and purpose-built rentals are being listed for stays of 28 days or more. Airbnb data shows approximately 14,800 Toronto properties advertised for 28 days or longer, about 69% of all listings1. This points to a broader regulatory gap that is allowing homes to shift out of the long-term rental market and into more precarious, unregulated arrangements, worsening an already severe housing affordability crisis.
Anecdotally we are noticing many of these occupants are not tourists but are workers or students who are looking for more permanent housing.
To increase the supply of long-term rental homes and ensure all renters can exercise their full rights under the Residential Tenancies Act, I am calling on the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to set up proper rules to restrict unregulated short and mid-term rentals. These rules should include:
1.Establish a comprehensive and stringently enforced provincial short-term rental registry that restricts short-term and mid-term rentals to a person’s primary residence only in all municipalities with a rental vacancy rate of 5% or lower.
2. Increase staffing and funding to the Rental Housing Enforcement Unit so tenants and landlords can get help on issues related to the Residential Tenancies Act, including short-term rental violations.
I look forward to a meeting with you on this matter.
Sincerely,
Jessica Bell
MPP for University-Rosedale