UPDATE – Check this link for details related to the 2014 Annual Rent Increase as well as the Automatic Rent Reduction in 2014 – http://wp.me/pia0J-ZA
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Rents will be reduced in 2013 due to the decrease in municipal property taxes. The percentage amount that a tenant can reduce their monthly rent is 0.71%. This means that tenants can look forward to a small reduction in their monthly rental payments effective December 31, 2012.
Tenants should note that they do not require permission from the landlord or the Landlord and Tenant Board to reduce their rent by 0.71%. However, as a courtesy, you should discuss how the reduction will be done with your landlord.
More information about this decrease in property taxes and the reduction in rent has been mailed out by City of Toronto only to tenants who qualify for the reduction. The rent reduction applies to tenants in residential properties. The properties excluded from the reduction include public housing, non-profit housing, non-profit co-operatives, etc. For more details on how this reduction is to be applied and to see if you qualify for a rent reduction you should check these City of Toronto links: http://www.toronto.ca/housing/tenant_notification.htm and http://www.toronto.ca/housing/rentlowerfaq.htm,
You can also phone the City of Toronto hotline 311 for further clarification.
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NOTES
1. Additional information can be obtained from the Landlord and Tenant Board at TEL: 416-645-8080 or at their website: www.ltb.gov.on.ca
2. The Federation of Metro Tenants’ Associations (FMTA) has posted a Q & A that provides clarification about the rent reduction. Check this link: http://www.torontotenants.org/
IMPORTANT NOTICE ON LAST MONTH RENT (LMR) – The landlord must pay the tenant interest on the rent deposit every year. Under the Residential Tenancies Act the interest charged on your last month’s rent will be equal to that year’s Annual Rent Increase Guideline amount. Landlords have the option to add that interest to your last month’s rent deposit or that interest can be applied as a reduction in your annual notice of a rent increase. Check this link: http://www.ltb.gov.on.ca/en/Key_Information/STDPROD_098894.html
East York Tenants Group 