On The Beach Education Corporation

The province of Ontario has forms that the landlord must use to communicate with their tenants from enforcing late payment of rent (N4), willful and negligent damage (N5), causing substantial interference with the reasonable enjoyment of the residential complex (N5), persistent late payment of rent (N8), 90-day rent increase notices (N1) and a host of other forms. Each form has its own set of termination dates so I will cover the most common eviction notice, the Form N4 Notice to End a Tenancy Early For Non-Payment of Rent.

You can go to the Ontario Landlord Tenant Board (LTB) website at www.ltb.gov.on.ca to view these forms.

As corporate policy, all tenants who do not pay their full rent on the 1^st day of the month are automatically served a Form N4 on the second day of the month. I give tenants a grace period until 12:00pm noon of the second day. The reason for acting so swiftly does two things: (1) it trains your tenants that you want your rent paid on time, and (2) the sooner the notice is served, the sooner you can process the eviction if it is required.

The Form N4 is a legal notice that could lead to you being evicted from your home. The operative word here is “could” and does not necessarily mean it will happen. The notice has a termination date which is the deadline date for the tenant to pay their rent before the landlord can apply to the LTB for an eviction hearing. The operative wording here is “apply”.

The termination date is calculated 14 days after the landlord gives the tenant the notice. So on the 2^nd day of the month, fourteen days after is the 16^th day of the month. This is the day that the landlord can apply to the LTB for a hearing.

If by the 16^th day of the month, the tenant has not paid their rent, we fill out a Form L1 Application to evict a tenant for non-payment of rent and to collect rent the tenant owes. The form is 7 pages and the landlord must include a copy of the Form N4 that was served which is 2 pages. The application fee is $170.00. The application is faxed to the nearest branch that services the area which is listed under Regional Offices and Locations on their website.

And then you wait anywhere from two days to two weeks for a response from the LTB. When you receive the Notice of Hearing, your application is assigned a 7-digit NOL number with the date, time and location of the hearing.

You must attend the hearing in person or send an authorized representative. The representative must have written authorization to act on your behalf.

The hearing is scheduled anywhere from two weeks to two months. It is usually within two to three weeks. In the case of the Christmas season, it can be as long as two months to get a hearing scheduled.

The tenant that we evicted on February 10^th started with an L1 application submitted on November 17, 2009. We received the Notice of Hearing on November 24, 2010. The hearing was scheduled for January 12, 2010.

All hearings begin at 9:00 a.m. and go all day. The files are called up in numerical order by NOL number.

In about half the cases, the tenant shows up to plead their case to the adjudicator. In these instances, the adjudicator favors the tenant and will recommend the landlord give the tenant the option to pay installment payments on their back rent. However, if the tenant has a history of non-payment of rent, this is where your previous Form N4’s on file are proof that the tenant is a risk. The landlord can plead their case to proceed with the eviction.

In my case, the tenant did not show up and I won the application. The judge approved an Order Under Section 69 of the Ontario Residential Tenancies Act, 2006. The Order is mailed out to the landlord. Two originals of the Order was received on January 18, 2010. One original is for the landlord’s file. The second original is delivered to the tenant.

The Order stipulates that the tenant must move out of the rental unit on or before January 25, 2010, along with other information about the amount of rent and compensation that is owed.

The tenant remained in the rental unit on January 25. The Landlord is then allowed to file the Order with the Court Enforcement Office (Sheriff) to enforce the Order on the following day. I filed the Court Enforcement Order at the court house on January 27. They mail out the Notice To Vacate; one gets mailed to the landlord and one gets mailed to the tenant.

We received our copy of the Notice To Vacate from the Superior Court of Justice on February 1, 2010. The eviction date was scheduled for February 10, 2010 at 10:00 a.m.

The tenant failed to vacate the premises. The Sheriff arrived at 10:00 a.m. on February 10 to evict the tenant. The tenant was not home so the Sheriff posted the notice on the door. The rental unit is now technically in the landlord’s possession. However, the tenant has an additional 72 hours to remove their personal belongings. The tenant is permitted access to their unit between the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. but cannot stay in the unit overnight.

The 72 hour period ended on February 13, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. The tenant pleaded for thirty more minutes. I arrived back at 10:30 a.m. and the tenant pleaded for more time. When I refused, the tenant demanded more time and refused to leave. This is when you call the police. The police arrived within five minutes to escort the tenant off the premises.

If you feel the tenant is a disturbance and a continuing threat to the building and the other residents, you may fill out a Trespass Notice to Prohibited Person available at the police station. This Notice must be served to the tenant prior to their vacating their unit and prohibits them from entering the building or else they will be arrested and fined.

On February 13, 2010 at 11:00 a.m. I took possession of the rental unit. All of the contents now legally belongs to the landlord to dispose of as they see fit. And that’s how an eviction process works from beginning to end.

This incident was a worst case scenario. The LTB does not schedule any hearings during the month of December so delinquent tenants are given a month grace. In a portfolio of 243 rental units, this is the only eviction we have had to process to this extent. The majority of our tenants pay on time and issuing the Form N4’s ensures compliance.

Welcome to the year 2010. I have been discovering that life is not about my expectations. Life is about how I manage my expectations. The reason that I have been experiencing disappointment and frustration is because my map of the world isn’t the way I want it to be right now. And that’s okay. It’s coming. Tony Robbins has a great saying: frustration means you are on the verge of a breakthrough. Instead of anchoring a negative feeling around frustration, he recommends reframing it into a positive feeling that is empowering. I’ve been having a lot of practice at this lately and my reframe is to first be aware that I am being frustrated, then to verbally state out loud “I am on the verge of a breakthrough. This is fascinating.” It’s taken about 4 to 5 weeks for me to notice that my frustration level has decreased. When I look at what I have accomplished versus what I haven’t done, I am always amazed at the results. And remember to say “Thank you.”

HIRING A RESIDENT MANAGER
Now that our systems are almost completed, we are in hiring mode. There is a position for a Resident Property Manager who will oversee a 243 unit portfolio spread over 7 buildings. The technical aspects: excellent administrative and management skills, computer-literate, fluent use of English grammar in correspondence required. The psychological aspects: self-motivated team leader, resourceful, forward-thinking, looking to settle down for the long term. This is a great opportunity for a self-starter to manage a multi-million dollar portfolio. Tell me why you think you are the perfect fit? Resumes to info@lakeheadapartments.com

AND THAT’S A RRAP
In January 2009, I purchased a 28-unit apartment building with a single investor. This is a lower income building that requires managing up. It meets the requirements to qualify for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Residential Rehabilitation Assistant Program aka CMHC RRAP. We accepted an invitation for assistance from one of my former Real Estate Network Group members, Chris Veale. He was a tremendous help in breaking down the units so that contractors could easily identify what needed upgrading and provide complete bids. The application process started in February 2009 and we got approval to proceed with bids in October. We just finished the electrical safety inspection and fixed all the deficiencies. This is a federal grant program targeting older buildings with low income tenants. The government offers owners assistance with upgrading their buildings. It takes patience to fill out all the paperwork but it’s free money. Upgrading buildings to handicap access is also available.

WHEN CONDO CONVERSION MAKES SENSE
This is a buy and hold strategy for certain buildings. The mill rate for residential properties is lower in Ontario than it is for commercial properties. For example, the property taxes on a 48-unit multi-family apartment is $18,000 versus a 48-unit multi-family apartment that has been condo converted is $9,000, this is a $9,000 savings per year. It’s easy to figure out the break even point when you will recoup the cost of converting and if it fits in to your exit strategy. This is a value add for this building and increases the attractiveness to a potential future buyer.

INVESTOR SAVVY: CREATING VALUE
Have you taken the time to think about an investment from your Investor’s point of view? How would you rate your investment? How do you create a wow experience? If you want to attract investors, what would they want to hear? The bottom line is important and it’s how you achieve that bottom line. Investors want to hear that you are continually increasing the value and performance of their investment, whatever the economic climate. Every month, every year, the revenue in your portfolio should continue to increase even in a down market. It’s easy to make money in an up market. The aphorism goes, all ships rise with the tide. The people who make money during a down market are the savvy investors. It’s only when the tide goes out that you learn who’s been swimming naked as Warren Buffett says. This is your opportunity to provide intrinsic value on top of financial value.

SUCCESS BLUEPRINT WORKSHOP
My business coach Andrew Barber-Starkey with www.ProCoachSystem.com is putting on one of his exceptional workshops. There’s no obligation to buy anything except to enjoy the day and learn lots.
Jan 19 in Burnaby; Jan 25 Edmonton; Jan 26 Calgary
Click here to download the Annual Progress review, an exercise that we use in his coaching program, as a free gift from Andrew.

PRO-ACTIVE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT - PART 4
When managing multiple turn overs at month end, give tenants an incentive to move out early and to move in late by pro-rating their rent and bonusing it back to them. This way you can manage multiple turnovers and spread it out over a week or two instead of doing it all on the last day of the month. This tip is part of my “How can I create a fail-safe, fool-proof property management system that is easy to use?” system.

Never forget: the secret of creating riches for oneself is to create them for others. Sir John Templeton.

July Ono