Follow up email from Jennifer Howard

An email from Jennifer Howard addressing the issues raised on Monday's meeting:

Hi all -

It was a pleasure meeting with all of you on Monday. I wanted to provide you with the information that you had requested. Here are the questions you had asked me and the responses that I have been able to find:

1) What is the regulation with regards to applying for a rent increase to cover the costs of repairs made necessary by past neglect of general maintenance? Is there any definition of "regular maintenance"?

There isn't an actual definition of "regular maintenance" in either the Act or the regulations. The regulation states that a landlord's operating expenses can include the cost of renting, maintaining and repairing, facilities, equipment, furnishings and furniture to the extent that the costs have not been recovered from a tenant's security deposit or form another source. All of these expenses must be related to the normal or usual operation of the residential complex and must not be non-recurring or extraordinary expenses.

The Act provides that the director must consider whether and to what extent any increases in costs with respect to repairs and maintenance result from inadequate maintenance in previous years if the residential complex was sold in the last three years.

2) What is the rule about landlords applying the rent increase before it is approved? Can a landlord apply the increase before it is approved? At what point can the increase be applied?

Landlords who give the required three months written notice of a rent increase can begin collecting the proposed rent increase on the effective date of the rent increase even if the rent increase approval process is not completed by either the Residential Tenancies Branch or Commission on appeal. If the requested rent increase is not approved and the landlord has already collected it, the landlord is required to refund the tenants for any overpayments.

3) Is there a tenant officer that has this file with whom the tenants may speak and get more technical information?

The name of the officer who issued the Order is on the Order. If tenants require information that is not included in the Reasons for Decision they may contact this officer directly. His name is Rosaire Lemoine and he can be reached at 945-5722.

4) Is there a public document that lists the types of repairs that are eligible for an above guideline increase and the amortization period for each?

The entire rent regulation is at this web address http://web2.gov.mb.ca/laws/regs/pdf/r119-156.92.pdf

The specific regulations that deal with expenses are Regulation 8 (operating) and regulation 9 (capital).

I recognize that several of the concerns raised are more of a policy nature. Please be assured that I will be raising these issues with my colleagues, including the Minister.

Thanks for sharing your concerns with me. Please don't hesitate to contact me or my office if you require anything else. And please keep me informed on the status of your appeal.

Take care,


Jennifer


---------------------------------------------------------------------
Jennifer Howard
MLA for Fort Rouge
Constituency Office: 946-0272
Legislature Office: 945-3981
jennifer.howard (at) leg.gov.mb.ca