NDP wants law to prohibit landlords from pet evictions of tenants to get past rent caps

The New Democratic Party is pushing for legislation to prevent Nova Scotia landlords from introducing no-pet policies as a way to circumvent the provincial rent cap.

“Animal shelters have been reporting increasingly in recent months that landlords are introducing no-pet policies into existing rental leases with the general thought that tenants not wanting to be parted from their animals might then leave,” Gary Burrill, the MLA for Halifax Chebucto, told reporters Wednesday at Province House in Halifax in support of a bill introduced by the NDP earlier that day.

“Of course, when they leave under the current rent-cap legislation, that means when a new tenant comes in, the rent cap will no longer apply,” Burrill said.

“The problem is that these pet evictions are being used by landlords as a strategy to get around the rent cap.”

Burrill said the NDP bill calls for legislation to ban the pet-eviction practice.

“We find increasingly that people are in situations, where landlords are bringing forth these no-pet policies and there isn’t anywhere to go, people are surrendering their pets and giving up their pets so that they don’t get evicted, they and their families,” Burrill said.

“We’ve heard from shelters that there is an increasing number in the current housing crisis of people contacting them in this kind of way. We think that people being separated from their pets to get around the rent cap is pretty gross.”

Simple law

Burrill said a simple law could prevent it and that Ontario has such a law and “Nova Scotia should do the same.”

Not likely, according to Service Nova Scotia Minister Colton LeBlanc.

“Not at this time,” LeBlanc said of considering any legislation to prohibit the no-pet policies to get past the rent cap.

“We recognize the importance pets have to many Nova Scotians and for many, pets are considered part of the family,” LeBlanc said.

“There are provisions in the legislation that allow a tenant in any unresolved dispute between a tenant and a landlord to contest that change,” he said. “I remind Nova Scotians that any time there is a change in the lease conditions, there is a minimum of four months’ notice required.”

LeBlanc said a tenant has every right to apply to the tenancy board for an adjudicated decision to see if that decision by the landlord is reasonable.

The minister said an eviction notice does not mean eviction and any time a tenant applies to the board, it stops the clock on the notice.

“Regardless if it’s two weeks, four weeks, six weeks to get a hearing, if a tenant is served with an eviction notice, the minute that they apply in fact stops the clock until there is a decision made by the tenancy officer.”

Balanced lens

LeBlanc said he is continually looking at the tenant-landlord dynamic through a balanced lens, recognizing that both their needs differ.

“We are always looking at ways to strengthen the program but, at this time, there is a (tenancy board) process.”

LeBlanc said a landlord has the right to change the conditions of the lease with a minimum of four months’ notice and the tenant has a right to then contest the decision and make a case before the tenancy board.

Hugh Chisholm, president of the Tuxedo Party of Canada Cat Welfare Society, said the local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) for the first time in history had extra room a couple of years ago after turning away people’s pets for decades.

“Now we’ve got to the point where most of the local (animal) shelters are full, people that are looking after animals in foster care are no longer available and pet owners are faced with the situation of either turning their pet out on the street or trying to find some other (housing) alternative for themselves,” said Chisholm, whose society advocates for pets and their owners and was the group responsible for the 2012 run for mayor of Halifax by Tuxedo Stan, a black and white cat.

“I’ve even befriended a man who has been living in his car because he has a little dog and he can’t find a place to go and rather than surrender his dog, he’s living rough in the woods out of his car. We had one lady turn in a cat to our shelter (Spay Day House in Bedford) who . . . had the cat for 10 years and one day just got a message that we’re now a no-pets building and you either have to get rid of your cat or move out.”

Not isolated

Chisholm said some two-thirds of Nova Scotians have a family pet and no-pet evictions can affect thousands of residents.

“We’re very encouraged that the NDP has taken this and to try to move it forward. We’re hopeful that the government and the official opposition will stand behind this bill and make it law as soon as possible.”

Burrill disagreed with the minister’s response about tenants’ right to an adjudication to determine the reasonableness of a landlord’s policy.

“The difficulty is, all other things being equal, under the present rules it is extremely likely that the pet-evicted tenant will not win that case,” Burrill said.

“What we need are new rules under which when a pet eviction is contested, the tenant’s position will be upheld. We don’t have those rules now and what Colton LeBlanc said today is that he is not interested in bringing in such rules.”