OTTAWA — NDP MPP Chandra Pasma (Ottawa West—Nepean) and Shadow Minister for Housing Catherine McKenney (Ottawa Centre) released the following statement in response to the City of Ottawa’s rent-reduction directive for pre-2001 rental units:
“The City of Ottawa’s decision to bring tax fairness for pre-2001 buildings and the subsequent rent reduction is a lifeline for families across the city as they battle rising costs of living,” said McKenney. “However, property management companies are refusing to comply to the city’s orders and continuing to fight tenants for higher rents. This is unacceptable. We need fairness and protections for Ottawa tenants, so they can see the savings that the city promised them.”
“Corporate landlords have to respect tenant rights and follow the law,” said Pasma. “Instead, what we're seeing is corporate landlords pressuring tenants not to apply a lawful rent reduction. This kind of intimidation is unacceptable but sadly part of a broader pattern where large, corporate landlords keep getting away with treating tenant rights as optional if profits are at stake.”
The Residential Tenancy Act requires municipalities to notify eligible renters of an automatic rent reduction when property taxes are decreased by more than 2.49 per cent. This reduction would see rent in 2026 drop 0.89 per cent for Ottawa tenants. Despite this clear entitlement, some landlords are issuing notices discouraging tenants from applying the full reduction by falsely advising them the Landlord and Tenant Board will reject it, even though hearings at the LTB haven’t even taken place yet and no such decision has been made by the LTB.
“0.89 per cent may not seem like a lot of money to some, but in a cost-of-living crisis that has too many of our neighbours struggling to make ends meet, every bit of relief helps” added McKenney.
QUEEN’S PARK — Ontario NDP Shadow Housing Minister Catherine McKenney (Ottawa Centre) says that Doug Ford has given up on solving the housing crisis, evidenced by failure after failure when it comes to building homes.
OTTAWA – NDP Shadow Minister for Housing, Catherine McKenney (Ottawa Centre) called out Doug Ford and his Minister of Housing for not delivering on the promised 1.5 million homes, as housing starts took a dip in May:
QUEEN’S PARK – Ontario NDP Shadow Minister for Housing Catherine McKenney (Ottawa Centre) released the following statement in response to the Ford government finally giving tenants the right to install air conditioners in their units starting July 1, years after the actual legislation, Bill 97, passed: