The end of entrepreneurship

Great Moments In Socialism nannystate 111 Comments

When my rental property got to the point where it needed substantial upgrades, I took into consideration the hassles of chasing tenants for rent and concluded that it was best to have the fire department use it for a practice burn. I never regretted that decision.

Once the impact of rising interest rates fully collides with deadbeat tenants using the power of the state to delay eviction, there will be very little left of the rental housing market in this country.

Just last year, Marco had two houses to his name, but for months has been sleeping in his car — all because his tenants, whom he’s been unable to evict, haven’t paid their rent.

Marco, 33, lost his marital home in a separation agreement in January. He still owns an income property — a two-suite house in Collingwood, Ont. — but says his upstairs tenant hasn’t paid up since June; the one downstairs hasn’t since February. 

(More rental tales in the comments – Kate)

111 Replies to “The end of entrepreneurship”

  1. When the gov’t enacts laws that not only allow thieves to steal from you, but protects them while they do it, this is the outcome.

    2. *
      This is where knowing someone from a local motorcycle club
      comes in handy. For the cost of two or three months rent
      you can get soeone to intercede with your ne’er do well
      tenants.

      *

      1. Those MC people will also sell you a gun, no questions asked.
        Look at yourself: Illegal guns = bad, but thugs chasing impoverished families out of their homes = good. You are a stain on the moral fabric of society.

        1. *
          Yes, yes, Ho… we know who you’re rooting for!

          And please tell me more about your experiences
          buying illegal firearms.

          *

        2. HiHo, you got possessive wrong, it is not their home, it is the person who bought and paid for its home. If “Marco” above personally, bodily removes them so he doesn’t have to sleep in his car, does that remove the stain? You are a piece of dog shit.

          1. “HiHo, you got possessive wrong, it is not their home, it is the person who bought and paid for its home.”
            So, it’s the banks and the gov’ts building, and if the bank increases rates,or the state increases taxes, and you can’t afford it, and they personally remove you from the premises, well, that’s OK by you.
            Your average piece of dogsh*t is more moral than you.

        3. HoHo,

          Git a life already, if you had ever to deal with a a**hole tenant, you would be singing a different tune. I know, I was a landlord for much of my life.

      2. Neo
        Hahahahaha..Had a friend take this ugly witch out, while I , with help, moved her shit out, and into storage. When she came back, large brown envelope taped to door, with info about rental unit, and key. I paid for 1 month only, and my friend who took her out, was not some one that even bikers would bother. She was the owners former Girl friend , who refused to move when he sold the place and moved out, dropped her , and bought new.

  2. That’s about the jest of all rentals………I remember renting a brand new house to this lady with 4 kids…..I was allowed to inspect IF I requested, but only if I asked 24 hrs ahead of time which was fair, but was refused every time…Finally at 6 months I was allowed to check the NEW house and found it to be emptied of all furnishings, and had a $30,000.00 bill to repair the home as YES it was that bad……..NEVER got a penny from the renter…..needless to say……GOT OUT OF THE RENTAL BUSINESS

  3. This just happened to good friend. The tenant from hell refused to move from his basement apartment after she was instructed to leave (the reason for the eviction was she was disruptive to him and another tenant). It cost him a large bribe plus legal fees. He’s vowed to never rent the apartment again. One more needed housing unit removed from the market.

    1. When I was a kid, my parents had a rental property, a house in Caledonia, in the early 70s. The best tenants were bikers. The worst were families. Just goes to show, career criminals are less likely to sh*t in the bed they sleep in, and families will place their children ahead of the rent? &$&*%*%^*((%^ dead-beat young families!!!

    2. I had rented out the basement suite in my home for 20 years, was fortunate with tenants so was not up on new renter-friendly rules in BC. Last tenant was there 8 years with no rent increase, so I thought it was time to raise the rent a small amount (market rent was 50% more than I was charging). New rules said cost of living went up 4%, and also that I could only raise rent 2%… that’s right. I could never catch up. So my house, my rules … eviction notice. I had to pay the tenant 1 months rent for the privilege of having my own basement back. Then Covid arrived with new BC rules … no evictions. I was lucky, tenant paid rent, then left on her own, taking the hint.

      The stupid government complains of not enough rental housing, but they created the problem by treating small time landlords like robber barons.

      Now, I am done being a landlord. Well except my son has taken over the basement. But that is a whole other issue.

  4. Well, deadbeat tenants show up to riot. They make great photo ops, especially with rented children and ‘just been crying’ make up. The media love them, but stay upwind. Sorry Denis, you need a PR front.

  5. I guess the landlord was an idiot. In the building I live in, there was a dead-beat single mother of two kids under 8 years old, no less. Took less than two months to evict her. The fact is, some tenants feel they can abuse landlords, and some landlords feel they can abuse tenants, and abuse is in the eye of the beholder, in many respects. Myself, as a tenant, maintain my own apt, change washers on faucets, change caulk around sinks, unclog my own, very poorly drained drains, do my own electrical troubleshooting, and fix cheap stuff myself. Landlord loves me, because I never bug him. OTOH, however, some tenants in the building, are not so independent; One woman had one out of two elements in her water heater blow, never told the landlord over the summer, and when it started getting colder complained that the landlord left her high and dry for months.
    There seems to be a dogma around here that landlords = good, and tenants = bad, which simply is not the case.

  6. Gotta love how the CBC, Dennis, and by extension this blog, and many of the commenter here all agree: Poor people suck! This is why I have zero sympathy for people like yourselves being reduced to poverty.

    1. Your comment, though oddly composed, seems to indicate that people trying to get ahead suck, and those who refuse to pay their “reparations” to random “tenants” are a problem. Are you indeed saying that?

      1. LOL.
        A good landlord will show the tenats the books. If he thinks he’s entitled to whatever profit margin the market will bear, by drastically changing contracts as they end, he’s wrong.
        I guess by “trying to get ahead”, you mean trying to pay for his 3-car garage and heated pool by renting out dwelling places, I guess you’re right.
        if you think its OK to do that, but don’t think its OK for the bank to increase your interest rate by 20% at the end of a term, well, there ya go.
        You s*ck.

    2. *
      Ho… please expand a little on your love affair with the perennially
      indigent      . What exactly is it you admire about people with zero
      pride or ambition, women who have multiple children with multiple,
      often criminal men… and folks who choose a life of addiction over
      contributing to society.

      What exactly is your place & contribution to the field of folk?

      And that’s not a rhetorical question.

      *

      1. To you, “contributing to society” = the same thing as what the CBC thinks it is: Screwing over millions.
        FO lefty.

        1. *
          Well… that’s the first time anyone has tried to put me
          in bed with the CBC. Tell me more about myself…
          anonymous internet stranger.

          *

    3. You’ve got no clue. Just because you see yourself as THE IDEAL TENANT, doesnt mean all tenants are ideal. Far from it. Here in greater Victoria, basement rentals are common. So are the stories of deadbeat tenants, defended by the Renters Act against logical action and evictions.
      Deadbeats are pros, knowing they can live up to 9 months for free, before skipping out while stiffing the landlord of all costs they are borne for.
      Renters, in fact, have far too many “rights”. I know too many people, former landlords, that will never rent their unit again.
      We have a nice 1,000 sq ft basement unit, could bring in $2k a month, but we will never subject ourselves to any renter and the nightmares they can bring!

    4. What kind of slumlord lets their rental property get so bad it makes more sense to burn it down?

  7. I’ve been a landlord for thirty years, with mixed results. I think the push against landlords here in BC is intentional. The govt is trying to become the sole source of rental housing here. The sheer number of new govt units being built suggests this to be the case. Most recently, rental rate increases which were tied to inflation got untied, since inflation is high. So now our costs are up six percent but the rent can be raised by two.
    All I can advise is never rent out with utilities included, insist on renters having accounts of their own and references are not worth the time looking them up.

    1. My landlord recently increased the rent well over and above the legal limit. He told us that he may need to do so well beforehand. When he told me, I said “show me the numbers”, so he organized a big landlord/tenant meeting where he showed us his expenses on the building, with receipts, and thereby justified his rate increase, to which we all agreed, except for the one tenant who thinks that she is somehow entitled to live below cost. In my books, a landlord willing to show his tenants the books is a good landlord, even if he is a citified immigrant from Lebanon.

      1. Then go buy your own place and stop being a grifter. It might wake you up to the reality of ownership, instead of playing the politics of envy.

        1. Ahh yes, renters are grifters, even when they pay. You are a real ahole.
          …and you wonder why I laugh when the bank takes your land.

  8. Here is one of my landlord stories.

    Had a house beside a business i owned. rented it to a young couple that both had jobs, were expecting their first child, and their history checked out,. The woman left in the first month, and the male brought in another room mate. A few months in, I received a complaint about a leaking pipe. I went to inspect and I found that the basement had been partitioned into 8 separate sleeping areas and the tenant had turned it into a flophouse and charging people rent, while being behind on his rent for three months. Everything was wearing out in the house because of high usage, and the tenant, when brought to the rentals board said we refused to fix anything (absolute lie) and was not going to pay until everything was to his satisfaction. Needless to say, six months from his moving in, the place suddenly developed a bad case of bed bugs, and he tried to blame me. Did I mention the rentals board saw no issue with him packing the house with bums? So, now we had an infested house, that we were sending repairmen to at least a couple times a month, and no rent, and the rentals board was protecting them from eviction. So, I had the house declared unfit, and tore it down to get rid of all the parasites. It now sits as a rental parking lot earning more money, and much less hassle. Don’t pay, tow away.

    1. So you, in your total genius, failed to include any sub-letting language in your lease.
      A simple term like “no sub-letting, and no people not on the lease agreement shall live there.

      1. Perhaps you do not understand. the wording varies from province to province and when you’re dealing with the rentals board, you are automatically assumed to be a lying ogre when you enter. Don’t make judgments upon others when you know very little of the situation.

        Here is another ruling, we experienced.

        We purchased another building and it had two existing tenants living on the main and second floors. The building was in disrepair and we set about to improve the property. Upon the renewal, we were seeking to increase the rent by $28 per month (2002). We filled out all the papers for the rental board and showed our work and receipts. The tenant complained, and fought the increase. Her reasoning was, she had not had a rent increase in 12 years and saw no reason why she should have to have one now. The board sided with her logic, despite the fact she was paying 1990 rates with an all inclusive package, free parking, and utilities included for a price of only $350. We claimed it back for office space and had her ejected.

        1. Ejecting that deadbeat who wouldn’t pay a $28 increase over a decade was OK, in my books. Did you try to explain to the cnt? Show her the books, etc? As with all things, sunlight is the best disinfectant.

      2. *
        Ho smarmily interjects… “failed to include any sub-letting language in your lease”

        Read slower Ho. The point is that people who constantly ignore the law are not
        going to pay attention to your ‘sub-letting’ language.

        Which criminal behavior you seem to be celebrating.

        *

      3. HoHo
        Many tenants do as they please, and use “rental agreement” for ASS wipe, time for you to ADULT for once in yer life!

        1. As I said, here in the libtarded bastion of Ontario, it took less than 2 months to get rid of a single mother of two for not paying her rent. I’m not sure how it works in those meccas of conservatism known as the prairies.

          1. *
            Ho… this is fascinating, in that it defies every other
            account I’ve come across… source please.

            *

          2. My source is personal experience in the 7-apt building I live in.
            Your source is the CBC and the Globe and Mail.

      4. Hi, you fail in your arguments when you fail to see that others are not always wrong and you are not always right.

  9. When I look at all the comment here, it seems that landlords faced with foreclosures due to increased mortgage interest rates = bad, but tenants forced out of their homes for the very same reason = good. Once again, you all, Dennis and the CBC all agree: Poor people suck! You’ll have to tighten your belts so our owners can have more and more and more, and if your belt is already way to tight, well screw you, you suck! People who think that buying rental property where people actually live is no different than investing on the stock exchanges makes Ebeneezer Scrooge look like a saint.
    A good landlord will open the books to his tenants, and work in good faith with them. An ahoe will not. Its that simple.

    1. You seem to lack a certain grasp of economics, reality and manners. Perhaps you should post with the other NDPers on rabble.ca?

      1. Open the books, and deal in good faith, or FO. I have as much sympathy for people like you as you have for your tenants, it seems.
        Again:
        Open the books, and deal in good faith, or FO.

        1. You are not entitled. Get it? Sorry, life ain’t fair, and it’s too bad that you still can’t comprehend that fact.

          1. Not entitled to know what my life actually costs. Its a deep secret of the landlords, the bank and the state. Well, if we disagree, we’ll have to fight. Gotcha..

        2. You’re the one who might need to FO. A lot of high handed vs coming out of you on this subject. It’s pretty clear you are implying folks here are lying about their experiences or taking advantage of their tenants to make the big bucks, yadda yadda yadda.
          For my part six percent inflation is what it is. As a landlord I offer a service, a product. I no.more have to “open the books” to show my tenants I am not making too much than your grocer needs to show you his wholesale costs.
          You can take your proclamations of what constitutes a “good landlord” and FO. You sound full of shit to me.

        3. No one is entitled to my books other than the tax man. There is a big F O to you or anyone else.

    2. *
      If you’re really that upset with capitalism, Ho…
      you could try moving to Yemen. I hear they’re
      big proponents of not worrying about the ‘law
      of the land.’

      No nasty ‘landlord tribunals either… just the
      blade or the AK47.

      *

      1. Again, you are a stain on the moral fabric of society. You whine when banks forclose on you, but cheer when the poor get booted out of their homes. People like you are the ones who brought about the Great Depression, all surprised that there were no tenants left. You have the memory of a mayfly, and the morals of a coyote.

        1. *
          When exactly did the banks foreclose on me, Ho? And please expand on
          my ‘cheering when people get evicted.’ I’m also interested in your theories
          about the Great Depression… where exactly did you learn that?

          And, hey… as a general rule, name-calling is not the way to win an argument
          or advance your cause. There are some books I could recommend that
          you read, if that would help?

          *

    3. *
      “My source is personal experience in the 7-apt building I live in.”

      So no verifiable source… just Uncle Ho and ‘Once upon a time.’
      How can anyone dispute that?

      *

      2. You can call me a liar all you like. The fact that you give more credence to the CBC and the Globe and Mail tells more about you than it does me, because they are oh-so-authoritative.
        The funniest thing as that people here think you have a single conservative bone in your body.
        Its not funny, its tragic. You and your ilk have used critical theory argumants against my positions more than once, what with your “think of the children!!” cries. You are the enemy of a free people just as the CBC and the Globe and Mail are.

        1. *
          “You and your ilk have used critical theory argumants against my positions more than once”

          Ho, buddy… if my ‘ilk’ has been making those noises inside your head again, you might want
          to get your meds adjusted. And try to remember it isn’t always about you.

          And, fwiw… it’s spelled ‘arguments.’

          *

  10. Trudeau made the comment Housing is a Human Right in Canada and signed on to some International Agreement saying it is, of course in lied, he doesn’t no shit about it. It isn’t, housing is not a Human Right in Canada, nothing in the law or constitution mentions it. The problem now is many think it is. As a property manager, I have no problem evictinng tenants, the key is, fixed term leases, attempt a payment plan, demostrate some compassion, if they fail, go to RTDRS with the proper paperwork, I have never lost. If i think they are going to fight the order, I make sure the Master puts in the order I can use the police to help them be removed. If you are attempting to be a landlord and you think its amatuer hour, good luck.

  11. Governments at all levels have made housing as expensive as possible and weighted the rental housing legislation in favor of the tenants making it less attractive to increase rental capacity. The NDP and their intellectual equivalent are now getting into “social housing” which is a make-over of what used to be called the “Projects”.

      1. It goes without saying that not only will you take as gospel the CBC article that this piece is based on, but also the Globe and Mail. Neo-conservative is just another word for Liberal.

        1. *
          Obviously, you know something that contradicts the media
          reporting here, Ho. Please supply us with the facts of the
          matter as well as your primary sources…. you know… like
          a big boy would do.

          *

          1. My eyes and my personal experience are my sources. Yeah, I know, you trust anyone and anything that will confirm your personal biases more than you trust eye-witness testimony from actual poor people who have watched rent-increase and eviction dynamics play out in real time. That’s because you s*ck.
            BTW I’m the guy who suggested to my landlord to show us the books so he could get all the tenants behind him on the rent increase, and it worked.

          2. *
            Ho volunteers modestly… BTW I’m the guy who suggested to my landlord to show us the books”

            Yeah, yeah Norma Rae… we get it… you’re the ‘Peoples Champion.’

            *

  12. Here in Ontario, if someone doesn’t pay, you can get them out in 60 days, max.
    What you can’t do is increase the rent without reason more than 1.2% a year, unless the tenants agree to a bigger increase. In my building of 7 that exact thing happened, and all tenants agreed to a $50/month increase (around 7%) because the landlord was good enough to show us the books.
    I guess in the “conservative” places like AB and SK, things are different, and they so hate their tenants that they think that the building expenses are none of their business.

    1. *
      “Here in Ontario, if someone doesn’t pay, you can get them out in 60 days, max.”

      Ho… you did see the original post Kate made here, right? Maybe read slower?

      *

        1. *
          You’re disputing the post? Source please.

          Otherwise, it’s all just ‘Aunt Sally says.’

          *

          1. As I said, you can take the CBC as gospel anytime, just don’t do it and call yourself a conservative.

  13. Publishing Marco’s last name might affect his employment? His photo is above the article.

  14. Some believe the landlord tenant venture is a partnership of some kind. They’re wrong of course. The landlord has a product, and the tenant wishes to borrow it. Tenants who abuse the product, default on payments, or undermine your ability to transact business should be evicted faster than a Trudeau running from a Convoy. It matters not how much in assets you possess or how poor the client is. Pay or get out.

    1. A landlord has as much right to ask for a significant increase in rent as a car-loan lender or mortgage institution has to ask for a significant increase in monthly payments. If you think its OK to ask for a 25% increase from one year to another, well, it’s OK for your car-loan people or mortgage holder to do the same..

  15. Perverse incentives.
    Real Estate was once a moderately recession proof retirement plan…And then our fearless leaders set out to “help us”.
    Rental agreements were pretty simple “Pay or move”..
    Now we see the modern rental agreement as demonstrated by utter ignorance personified..

    “Show us the books”. Right.Buy your own property or shut up..

    Just as the real “minimum wage” is zero,so the “Right to housing”..
    No one is obliged to provide free housing to another..

    Thanks to the “help and fairness” morons, private rental quarters are vanishing..
    Imagine,you invest in a rental unit and now you are rewarded with no income ,increasing personal debt and a wall of obstruction..Then you sell the property in disgust..to be rewarded by a Capitol Gains Penalty..Now proposed to be levied upon personal dwellings..

    Result?
    Change your retirement plans…
    No private rental housing..

    Another example of “We are from the government,we are here to help you”..Into poverty,servitude and dependence..
    Forward!

    But what can you expect from a parasitic overload and citizenry who do not protect the right of individual property?

    My retirement plan is now a camper under a bridge in a national park.
    Can anyone say camouflage netting?.

    1. They turned the family estate into just another commodity.
      Now ask yourself, who are “they”?

    2. Surprised to see that you are on the side of the state and the banksters.
      Janis Joplin was right.
      “My retirement plan is now a camper under a bridge in a national park.”
      I woulda thought it involved being euthanized by hot lead. Yer gettin’ soft in your old age, pal.

      1. Private Property preceded any “State” or Bankers comrade.
        This is mine and I will kill to keep it.
        Followed by family and then tribe.
        “This is the tribes”. Same rules,.

        Common wealth and “Civilization” are only possible with private property and individual right.

        Surprised?
        By what?
        The pictures in your head?

        1. Yeah, and ethics preceded it all. You seem to have forsaken ethics in the name of economics. You Mamon worshiping effers will pay, sooner or later, as you weed out the less faithful to your sick god.

          1. *
            “You Mamon worshiping effers”

            Mamon (‘Mah-mon’) is a Filipino chiffon cake.
            Did you mean ‘Mammon?’

            *

  16. You people make me sick. Lotsa tenants are aholes. Lotsa landlords are aholes. Your answers seems to be to treat everybody as an ahole, whether they are or not. All I’ve ever espoused is an honest relationship between landlords and tenants, and you people call me a commie.
    Its funny, especially when you consider the fact that landlords enjoy the same relations with the banks and the state as tenants enjoy with landlords. In the end, landlords and tenants should be on the same side, but you people, with your divide and conquer BS hate that idea, and would rather scapegoat whoever you can
    The hypocrisy, it burns!
    Sh*t rolls downhill right?

    1. Typical lifelong renter attitude. Thanks for justifying what most of us see, renters with attitude.

      You ARE the problem. If you don’t like it, buy your own place and wake up.

      Life ain’t fair, get used to it.

      Here in BC, it takes up to 9 months to get rid of a deadbeat renter, while they stop paying rent. In the meantime, they can destroy the rental. Sure, go ahead and sue them for damages and non-payment.
      1- First you have to find them to sue them.
      2-Deadbeats usually have no money
      3- If they do and one is successful on court, it still takes great effort to make them pay, anything related to the judgement, with a collection agency.

      You have no idea how bad the deadbeat renter problem is, yet you minimize and tell everyone here they don’t know what they are talking about. The problem is real and widespread.

      Typical renters attitude! Entitled.

      1. FO Dan. I’m the first person to stand up for a good landlord, as I have already shown. Aholes like you think that there is no such thing as a bad landlord.

    2. *
      Ho whinges… ” Your answers seems to be to treat everybody as an ahole”

      Generalise much? Where did anyone in this thread say that?

      On the other hand, Ho said… and I quote verbatim…

      “You people make me sick.”
      “you are on the side of the state and the banksters”
      “in the “conservative” places like AB and SK, they so hate their tenants”
      “Those MC people will also sell you a gun, no questions asked.”
      “Your average piece of dogsh*t is more moral than you.”
      you all, Dennis and the CBC all agree: Poor people suck!”

      You hear all that? Is that who you would want to live with?

      *

      1. Well, my landlord likes me, because I fix my own stuff and pay my rent, and support him when he needs it, but people like you, man, I wouldn’t want to live with you, what with your entitled crapola and your holier-than-thou attitude.

        1. *
          Ho announces… “Well, my landlord likes me”

          How could he not? By all (your) accounts, you’re a hero!

          *

    1. *
      Some Dollar Store Dale Carnegie right there.
      The ladies must find you irresistible .

      Or fellas, as the case may be.

      *

      1. Dollar Store Dale Carnegie? Must be some kinda new-age thing??? At least we all know what you all think of renters, of your customers. You and your ilk are doing everything you can to destroy the relationship between landlord and tenant.

        1. *
          “we all know what you all think of renters, of your customers”

          Who’s we… you and your mom? Gotta say, that ability to read people’s
          thoughts is pretty damned impressive. Now let me see you bend some
          spoons with your mind.

          *

  20. you all, like the WEF, are happy to treat the people as scum, as expendable, as economic units, and you wonder why people hate you. I can say this, if we the people cannot get at the WEF people to tear them limb from limb and string them up, we can get at you, and, at least here, all you seem to say is that you deserve it.

    1. *
      “Now I understand why the NEO types hate gun rights.”

      Oh my gawd, Ho… you’re adorable. I was involved in competitive
      pistol shooting back in the eighties… both here in Ontario and in
      New York State. I had a New York State carry permit and my lady
      friend (at the time) and I burned through 600 rounds a week
      practicing.

      Right now I’m awaiting transfer approval on a Smith 686.

      You just say whatever pops into your head, don’t you?

      *

        1. *
          “The guy talks about gun rights, while bragging about compliance.”

          Ho… you mean obeying the ‘law of the land?’ Yeah… I’m kind of a freak that way.
          Who do you stand with… the Bloods and the Crips?

          *

  22. I have it on good authority from DanBC that renters are grifters, just living off the selfless landlord’s goodwill.

  23. …and in the end, those of you who look down upon the poor as scum are the real scum, and as the state and the banks impoverish you all, all I’m gonna do is laugh.

    1. *
      “the state and the banks impoverish you all, all I’m gonna do is laugh.”

      That’s just eerie, the way you can see the future… you’re a regular Kreskin.
      What’s your rate for weddings and birthdays?

      *

  24. Very much back in the day, we rented one side of a duplex while spouse was at the local uni; I’d organized this as had a job lined up and had to report while spouse still working as long as possible to build up funds. It was a great place; we had one half (though basement had a fair bit of lumber and other crap), while the other side was occupied by landlord and wife up top and a WW I vet below. Turned out said vet had served with my grandad in WW I (when I brought parents over to show what I’d rented, “Danny” came out and ‘recognized’ my father), so I was privileged to get some insights into their war. We really tried hard to be good tenants, and had a good relationship with our landlord.
    Sadly, landlord had a heart attack and died; we were called next door by his wife’s niece,and spouse stayed by the bedside until the ambulance came. Interesting – and very European – funeral (spouse was official photographer so his family back “home” would have proof everything done properly); and all was well until widow decided to sell. She knew we were moving on as spouse had accepted a job offer elsewhere, but didn’t know our timeline. The new owners wanted us out instantly but – fortunately – only gave me verbal notice and I was able to use the existing provincial laws to extend the notice to give us the extra month we needed. We always paid rent on time and tried to be good tenants, but this caught us at a bad time financially so did use the provincial laws to give us the time we needed until spouse could come back to attend graduation and we could move on.
    Needless to say, we were very leery of renting when we moved. Spouse’s mother had died, so we were able to use the modest legacy she provided to put a down payment on a modest home. Best move we’ve ever made.

  25. If I was the dude living in my car while some deadbeat lived in MY property, I’d sure be awful tempted to just move myself into the house, along with the deadbeats, and see what happens. Maybe bring a friend and a dog too. Could be interesting?

    1. It would have to be the best dog ever. It’s really hard to keep your dog from doing what would get your ass sued off in circumstances like that. The friend might be good though…if you weren’t confident of your ability to handle the situation yourself. A witness might come in handy. Not many people have friends that good. A body cam might be better. Best suggestion yet and just what I would expect from a Finn.

  26. These are interesting comments. I have been on both sides of the issue here. I rented when I was younger and rented out a place when I was older. I can see from the comments that the issue is much bigger then the “end of entrepreneurship”. We have very little trust in each other and no trust that our institutions will help us. I think if you rent out a place I don’t see what’s wrong with some sort of cost breakdown. You have that with most bills why not rent? If you are a renter it is in your best interest to try and make that relationship work. If landlords dissapear you will be renting from the government. And it will be as great as everything else the government runs.

    1. Imagine calling your landlord at 9 pm because the water heater is flooding the basement. There is a possibility he may see value in getting a man, perhaps himself, on that immediately. Now imagine your landlord is the government. Ha Ha!

    2. “I think if you rent out a place I don’t see what’s wrong with some sort of cost breakdown.”

      ‘Cause it’s nobody’s GD business what my books look like, whether I’m a landlord, owner of a car dealership or running a lemonade stand. I charge what the market will bear and, just maybe, that’ll cover the thousands of $$$ I’ve had to pay out to cover damage, clean up, unpaid rent, legal fees, etc., etc., etc, from bad renters & I can contribute something towards my retirement in the end.

      Here’s a theoretical: Suppose I bought when real estate was low and I have a relatively low mortgage payment. I’m looking around & see the local rental market justifies an increase. I tell my renters that I want an x% increase based on that, my renters say, let’s see the books. I open them, they see my numbers and tell me, not a chance! You’re already making decent money!

      You wanna see my books? First, I’ll decide if I want a business partner. Next, my bank clears a large cheque from you. Last, you get to see my books.

  27. When I was a landlord I learned the hard way to use a Tenant verification service that gave me a credit history for $20 and a criminal history for another $20. The prospective tenant had to sign a release to allow me to do this. If they would not sign I would not consider them as tenants. It weeded out most bad tenants.

  28. It’s just another sign of our decline into anarchy. i was remembering walking the streets at Christmas Time, and looking at all the beautiful window displays people used to construct. Trains, toys, fashions, sports, you name it, all incredibly assembled into a Christmas Theme, often with Christ figured somewhere.

    Nowadays, no one even has a window display in the good neighborhoods. lack of impulse control, wimpy laws, and punishments, have us basically living among savages. Lock the windows, shatter proof, triple lock the doors, alarm systems, cameras, and still the decliner continues. Tenants, are always the ones who commit these crimes Home owners, know they have a lot to lose, whereas tenants live day to day, week to week. not all tenants are bad of course. In fact, the bad ones are a minor percentage. But like a single drop of oil supposedly contaminates a million litres of water, so do does one bad person contaminates the rest of society. It’s time we dealt with this sort of pollution by giving power back to people to deal with problematic clients. The rentals boards from coast to coast are a joke and interfering in good society.

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