1. Learn when your landlord might not have to move in
Question & Answer
What can I do if my landlord evicts me and does not move in?The landlord, their family member, or a caregiver does not have to move in right away after you're evicted. And sometimes, they don't have to move in at all.
Reasonable time to move in
The law says your landlord, their family member, or a caregiver must move in “within a reasonable time” after you move out. If they do move in within a reasonable time, your landlord does not owe you any more money for having to move out.
The law does not say what counts as a “reasonable” amount of time. (LTB) members look at the specific circumstances to decide if the person moved in reasonably quickly. For example:
- Did the rental unit need repairs?
- Was the person travelling for work?
- Did the person delay moving for a good reason, like illness?
LTB members often find that it's reasonable to wait a few months to move in.
You can still apply to the LTB if you think the person is taking too long to move in. This is true even if they eventually move in. For example, in one case where the LTB ordered the landlord to pay the tenant money, the landlord took 9 months to move in after evicting the tenant.
Material change in circumstances
The law says your landlord, their family member, or the caregiver must honestly plan to live in the rental unit for at least one year after they you. When a landlord evicts you for honest reasons, the law calls this acting in “good faith”.
Your landlord might have honestly planned to move in when they evicted you. But something unexpected happened in their life after they evicted you, so that it no longer makes sense for them to move in. The law calls this a “material change in circumstances”.
When there is a material change in circumstances, the landlord does not have to move in. And they will probably not owe you any more money for evicting you.
Here are some reasons that the person might not have to move in:
- The landlord gets a job offer in a different city.
- The person the caregiver was supposed to help dies.
- The landlord's child decides to go to school somewhere else.
It's important that these life changes are unexpected. If the landlord knows before you move out that things have changed and the person won't be moving in, they are no longer acting in good faith when they evict you.
For example, your landlord gives you a to move out because their spouse needs to live in the unit for a job. But before you move out, the spouse loses their job. The landlord is probably not acting in good faith if they evict you. In that situation, you can apply to the LTB.
Wait before you apply to the LTB
It's a good idea to wait a few months after you're evicted to see if the person moves in before you apply to the LTB. Waiting also gives you time to gather and get legal help.
