Ontario faces rising heat & pressure on tenant cooling rights

Calls for stronger protections against extreme heat in rental housing are growing louder.

According to tenants’ rights group ACORN, 44% of low- to moderate-income tenants go without air conditioning, with cost cited as the main barrier.  

Extreme heat poses significant health risks, especially for vulnerable populations such as seniors and low-income households living in older buildings that trap heat.

In 2023, Ontario passed Bill 97, which granted renters the right to install AC units if landlords don’t provide one. The law included rules to protect landlords as well, such as the ability to raise rent to cover hydro costs.

But the province never proclaimed this part of the law, says MPP Catherine McKenney, Ontario NDP’s shadow minister for housing, leaving tenants to sweat it out while waiting for cooling rights that were promised two years ago.

Meanwhile, Toronto is looking for local solutions. City officials are exploring a maximum heat bylaw that would require landlords to keep indoor temperatures below 26°C during summer months.

The city is also running a pilot program to provide free portable AC units to eligible low-income seniors with health conditions aggravated by heat.

One landlord advocacy group says their members will happily comply with any law regarding AC, but want government support for costly retrofits, especially in older buildings.

Every summer, this debate resurfaces, and every summer, the urgency grows. With heat waves growing more intense every year, could this year’s scorching temperatures finally push Ontario to act?

More regulation headlines

Ontario landlords could be liable for drug activity under new law – PayProp blog

Tenant advocates say Toronto’s new renoviction bylaw already making ‘positive impact’ – CTV News

Cottage owners pull rentals as new licensing rules affect Ontario – CBC