What’s Happening With Rent Discounts?

The rental prices in Toronto have dropped due to an increase in inventory and the COVID-19 pandemic. Some landlords are offering rent discounts to attract tenants, but some are doing so in an illegal way. The illegal approach involves offering the original lease price, and then providing a rebate or discount to make it seem like the tenant is getting a discount, while actually keeping the tenant on the hook for a higher lease price for the second year. Legal discounts are where the landlord offers the unit for lease for a certain price and provides a discount. In the future, the tenant will be on the hook for the original price. Some landlords do not understand the legal requirements of residential tenancy laws.