What can you reasonably expect as a renter?

A. Help from your landlord or building manager

Landlords and building managers have busy jobs. Many people depend on them. Building managers often live where they work, and are almost always on the job site.

Some are very supportive and try to help their renters in many ways. However, much of this is not part of their job. A landlord or building manager is not responsible for taking care of a renter’s personal needs, such as helping when someone is ill or home from the hospital.
 

Sometimes a senior would like to list the landlord or building manager as an emergency responder. An emergency responder is the first person a personal safety company will call if the senior “beeps them” (which means the senior is in distress, and needs assistance).
 

Be careful and do not assume your building manager can be an emergency responder. The person simply may not be trained for that special assistance. Plus, if your manager moves on, the new manager may not be willing or able to help in the same way.
 

Please, always ask someone before you name that person as your emergency responder.

 

B. Peace and quiet

As a renter, you are entitled to reasonable quiet and peaceful enjoyment of your suite or home, the building and the premises.
 

That does not mean you can expect absolute silence, just what is reasonable considering:
• the mix of residents,
• the size of the building,
• the age of your building,
• how much soundproofing it has, and
• where the building is located in the community (e.g. near a major road, a school, or a nightclub).

A building with only seniors may be quieter than a building with a mixture of seniors, young adults or young families.
 

Many seniors find that being a little tolerant goes a long way towards having and keeping good neighbours. Some seniors find that living up higher in the building means less noise from the street. Carpets in the suite located above you can help reduce noise too.
 

Living in close quarters involves effort and goodwill on everyone’s part. Getting to know your neighbours while respecting their right to privacy can go a long way to increasing your security and comfort in the apartment. People can look out for each other.
 

On the other hand, excessive noise or disturbances should be brought to the attention of your building manager. Write down the problem in a letter to the landlord, with dates and times.
 

As a tenant, you also have a responsibility not to make excessive noise. For example, you might want to have the television on late at night because you are having trouble sleeping.
 

Or maybe you have difficulty hearing and so you turn up your television. You might not realize that it is affecting your neighbours’ peace and quiet. To avoid problems like this, some seniors buy relatively inexpensive devices that allow them to hear the television or radio without disturbing others late at night.
 

Often neighbours will be mindful of your peace and quiet, when you are mindful of theirs.

 

C. Visitors

The place that you are renting is your home. That means you can have visitors when you want and as long as you want. However, you are responsible if your visitors are noisy or if they cause damage. This also does not mean that someone can move in with you permanently without the approval of your landlord.
 

Some owners or managers of rental buildings will tell you that you are only allowed visitors during certain hours or for a number of days a year. That would probably be considered an unreasonable rule, especially if the person is visiting to help you out while you are ill. Seniors need and deserve the support of family and others if they become ill.
 

Some seniors may decide to ignore rules that restrict visitors. Some may want to take it to the Board of Directors or to the owners to discuss the unreasonable effect it has on seniors who live alone. Having visitors stay for a few weeks can be extremely important to the health of some seniors, particularly since many government services that might have helped seniors have been cut back.
 

Some may decide to take the restriction to Arbitration (page 53) to have an arbitrator decide whether or not the restriction is reasonable. An arbitrator will look at whether this person is there temporarily or not, and consider things like “Does this person have a home somewhere else?“
 

Sometimes a landlord may suggest that the visitor is raising the costs by using more water or electricity. Usually the amount used is so small that it is not a justifiable reason for the rule, especially if the visitor is there to help you when you are ill.


 

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