Hello, I have been living in a rental in Vancouver for about 2 years with my brother. My brother is moving out due to some personal reasons and I asked the landlord about replacing my brother with a friend of mine and she said it’s good. She said she would increase rent after it’s been 1 year since the previous increase and it was all good.
Now one day before my friend is about to move in, she suddenly is demanding 20% rent increase and also forcing us to pay for electricity which was previously included in a rental. We rent a laneway unit and they control the garage part and washer/dryer as well. They charge their electric cars there. The washer dryer part of the laneway is also shared with other tenants that live in their basement.
What can I do?
Here is the section on roommates titled Rights and Responsibilities of Co-tenants in the “RESIDENTIAL TENANCY POLICY GUIDELINE”
Read it carefully because if you want to bring this to arbitration later, you will have had to follow the guidelines there.
Probably the most relevant section for you:
In a monthly or periodic tenancy, when a tenant serves the landlord with a written notice to end tenancy, the effective date of the notice must be at least one month after the landlord receives the notice and on the day before rent is due. If the tenant gives proper notice to end the tenancy, the tenancy agreement will end on the effective date of that notice and all tenants must move out, even where the notice has not been signed by all tenants. When a tenant has ended the tenancy by giving written notice, all co-tenants remain responsible for meeting the terms of the tenancy agreement until the effective date of the notice. Co-tenants wishing to remain in the rental unit after a notice to end the tenancy has been given should discuss the situation with the landlord. If the landlord agrees to the tenant staying, the landlord and tenant must enter into a new written tenancy agreement.
We have given no notice of ending the tenancy, however they’re forcing us to send them one if we don’t agree to a rental increase, which I obviously won’t.
Was your brothers name on the lease before?
Yes
Depends if it’s officially classified as shared accommodation rather than a rental unit.
By your description it doesn’t sound like shared accommodation to me (people sharing the same living space). I don’t think sharing a laundry room counts.
I suspect some landlords are being loose with the definition of shared to try and bypass tenancy regulations.
Best to talk to the tenancy board. If it’s not shared the rent increase is limited. If it’s shared, they can do whatever they want more or less.
I contacted the Tenancy board. What they’re doing is illegal. They also did a rent increase last year more than the prescribed limit and also we weren’t given a 3 month notice, so I was informed that I can file for reimbursement there too.
Good to know. I’ve been on both sides of the fence as a tenant and a landlord. We never play silly games with rent and the rules.
This site is sketchy AF ^
