5. Decide if you want to fight the rent increase

It's a good idea to read all documents carefully as soon as you get them from your landlord or the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB).

With the Form L5, the landlord must include evidence that shows:

• how much the municipal taxes and charges were for the last complete calendar year, called the base year
• how much the municipal taxes and charges were for the 12 months before the base year, called the reference year
• they paid all the municipal taxes and costs in the base and reference years
• any financial assistance they got that lowered their taxes or charges in the base and reference years

If the landlord did not send copies of their supporting evidence, you should write to your landlord asking for a copy right away. If the landlord refuses, you should contact the LTB.

It can be hard to challenge the landlord's math in these applications. But you can check that:

• all the municipal taxes and charges qualify for an above guideline increase
• you got proper notice of the rent increase

New tenants

If you moved in recently, you might not have to pay the above guideline rent increase.

Landlords can only get above guideline increases from tenants who had rental agreements more than 90 days before the first units in the building get the rent increase.

You can find the date of the first rent increase on the Form L5 under “Rental Information”.

Serious repair problems

You can fight an above guideline increase if your rental unit or building has serious repair problems.

If there is a “serious breach” of the landlord’s responsibilities to meet maintenance, health, and safety standards, the LTB can refuse or delay the increase.

The LTB can also refuse or delay the increase if the landlord:

• has been ordered to do work on an elevator, and
• has not finished the work by the deadline set out in the order.

The law does not list everyone who can order work on elevators. But it could be a municipality, the Landlord and Tenant Board, or an inspector from the Technical Standards and Safety Authority.

Work can include repairs, replacing elevators, or doing required upgrades.

Read more in the Responding to an AGI Application section of Applications for Rent Increases Above the Guideline.

Preparing documents

You must send your arguments against the increase in writing. These are called written submissions.

You should include as much evidence as you can with your written submissions. For example, for serious repair issues, include:

• photographs of the problems
• text messages or emails with your landlord
• how the problems affect you, for example, a doctor's note

The written submissions are your only chance to argue against the increase. So it's a good idea to get legal help before you send your submissions.

Your deadline for sending submissions is 50 days after the date the LTB issued the Notice of Written Hearing. You can find the issue date on the notice of hearing.

You only have to send your submissions to the LTB. You don't need to send a copy to your landlord.