What to do when you receive a Landlord and Tenant Board Notice:
Community Legal Clinics are Here for You!
Forms from the Landlord and Tenant Board have numbers such as L1, L2, N8. These and other forms are legal Notices that explain what the Landlord believes is true regarding your rent payments or other reasons that can lead to eviction.
Read the Notice. Then contact a Community Legal Clinic to get support. Simply call 211 to ask for the telephone number of your local Clinic. Appointments by telephone are available. The Community Legal Clinic may want you to register online with your government issued ID, Lease Agreement, and the Notice you received. Let them know if an in-person appointment is necessary for you to provide the requested items.
You can also go to your closest Landlord and Tenant Board and sign up for Duty Counsel which are available on a first come first serve basis. Although they are also available on the day of your hearing - they don’t represent Tenants, and can’t access any of the documents filed in your case on the Ontario Tribunals Portal.
Have any forms the landlord has filed to refer to in front of you when speaking with Duty Counsel.
Landlord and Tenant Board Hearings about Rent Arrears and/or Late Payments
If you receive a Notice of (Video) Hearing read important dates and information. Start seeking help right away, rather than waiting by calling 211 to ask for your local Community Legal Clinic.
Your Notice of Hearing includes the email address of where you can send your evidence well before the hearing - such as your rent payment confirmations, or important written communication you have had with your Landlord. The email address to send your ‘evidence’ of payments to is ltb.evidence@ontario.ca with the file number and hearing date in the subject line.
However, the most important thing is to attend on the Hearing date, or an order will be made without you. Arrive (or join the Zoom link - if a video hearing) 30 minutes before your hearing to ‘sign in’ with the Moderator who will ask you if you want to speak with a Duty Counsel and Mediator.
Landlord and Tenant Boards are concerned about rent payments being made to the Landlord as you agreed on your lease - on time, and in the amount you agreed. Consistent late payments are reason for your Landlord to apply to the board for your eviction.
If there are rent payments owing to the Landlord - be assertive in paying the late payments before the hearing if possible, or attend the hearing with a plan to agree to a payment re-schedule that is acceptable to you and the Board to avoid eviction. Always ask to try Mediation where you have more control of the outcome before proceeding to hearing. Late payments may even be made over the course of a year - while you continue to make your regular rent payments on time.
Supports are available to help you Pay Rent and Utility Bills Owing
Many different supports are available to stay housed depending on your personal circumstances. For Rent Arrears get started by calling The Toronto Rent Bank at 416-397-7368.
The Housing Stabilization Fund is available through your Ontario Works or ODSP caseworker. Your caseworker will provide information to you about the fund, and then an assessment of your request will be completed.
Community Homelessness Prevention Initiative (CHPI) at 1-866-716-7991 is a 12 month program that also helps with rent arrears, housing emergencies and utility bills. (CHPI is run by Ontario Works).
LEAP at 1-855-487-5327 is for assistance with your utility bills (Enbridge Gas and Electricity).
More supports are available from individual Organizations in Toronto including Violence Against Women organizations.