Covid-19 Update for Tenants.
2020 June 1st Update: The government has said tenants will be expected to pay unpaid rents. A payment plan can be negotiated. Again, if owners have managed to get their mortgages deferred we are expecting owners to pass on the benefit to the tenant as well.
If you are struggling to pay rent or utilities you can apply for assistance here
There has been a lot of mis-information going around regarding mortgages and rents. Mortgages being deferred and utilities being deferred are for those who need it. If you do not need it you are expected to act as normal. Service Alberta Landlord and Tenant Dept has informed us rents are expected to be paid as usual, and Owners are expected to pay their mortgage, bills, etc as usual. For more information you can phone Service Alberta Landlord and Tenant Dept at 1 (877) 427-4088 Monday to Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm
We are asking all owners to contact their banks and let us know if we will be able to extend a discount to tenants. We will contact each applicable tenant as we know. So far most clients are struggling to even reach their banks due to call volume. Mortgages are NOT being deferred automatically and NOT all are even being approved. Further to this, most owners are actually losing money already and if the owner is also out of work they may not be able to graciously offer a discount any more than the bank also gives them.
If you are going to be late paying rent but communicate with us we will offer more time than normal and rent will be accepted in multiple payments. If and only if you need a discount we would like a min of $1000 rent for April 1st and the balance by mid-month and hopefully either more support will be released and/or more owners will have more options by mid month.
We expect the minimum rent to be around $1000 even if owners have deferred mortgage payments or interest-only mortgage payments because condo fees, property taxes, insurance fees are not being waived or deferred in the same way. Even if an owner gets their mortgage deferred some rent may still be required. If utilities are included in your rent this will also be expected to be paid because deferred utilities merely mean one large bill in a couple months.
Additional note: we are not turning off auto-debit by default. You need to ask us in advance. The last day we can do this is about 5 business days before the 1st so if you would like to change payment plans you need to contact us as soon as possible.
What we are being told by Service Alberta and the Banks.
The banks expect tenants to pay their bills using EI and if that is not enough the tenant is to apply for assistance. If you are struggling to pay rent or utilities you can apply for assistance here. Then the tenant is expected to call their own financial institutions for relief on vehicle payments, loans, services, etc. IF and Only IF you STILL cannot pay your rent - you will be required to provide evidence, as this is not a free-for-all discount - some owners can ask the bank to defer their mortgage to reduce your costs. The owner is expected to pass on your evidence of need to the bank in order to apply for approval.
Many of our clients who have reached their bank are being told NO, rental properties are NOT getting a break to pass on to tenants. See article here from CBC. Daily we are hearing of owners getting more options from their banks such as interest-only payments (usually half of the mortgage payment).
Hopefully more options for both Landlords and Tenants will be offered shortly.
If you are struggling to pay rent or utilities you can apply for assistance here
There has been a lot of mis-information going around regarding mortgages and rents. Mortgages being deferred and utilities being deferred are for those who need it. If you do not need it you are expected to act as normal. Service Alberta Landlord and Tenant Dept has informed us rents are expected to be paid as usual, and Owners are expected to pay their mortgage, bills, etc as usual. For more information you can phone Service Alberta Landlord and Tenant Dept at 1 (877) 427-4088 Monday to Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm
We are asking all owners to contact their banks and let us know if we will be able to extend a discount to tenants. We will contact each applicable tenant as we know. So far most clients are struggling to even reach their banks due to call volume. Mortgages are NOT being deferred automatically and NOT all are even being approved. Further to this, most owners are actually losing money already and if the owner is also out of work they may not be able to graciously offer a discount any more than the bank also gives them.
If you are going to be late paying rent but communicate with us we will offer more time than normal and rent will be accepted in multiple payments. If and only if you need a discount we would like a min of $1000 rent for April 1st and the balance by mid-month and hopefully either more support will be released and/or more owners will have more options by mid month.
We expect the minimum rent to be around $1000 even if owners have deferred mortgage payments or interest-only mortgage payments because condo fees, property taxes, insurance fees are not being waived or deferred in the same way. Even if an owner gets their mortgage deferred some rent may still be required. If utilities are included in your rent this will also be expected to be paid because deferred utilities merely mean one large bill in a couple months.
Additional note: we are not turning off auto-debit by default. You need to ask us in advance. The last day we can do this is about 5 business days before the 1st so if you would like to change payment plans you need to contact us as soon as possible.
What we are being told by Service Alberta and the Banks.
The banks expect tenants to pay their bills using EI and if that is not enough the tenant is to apply for assistance. If you are struggling to pay rent or utilities you can apply for assistance here. Then the tenant is expected to call their own financial institutions for relief on vehicle payments, loans, services, etc. IF and Only IF you STILL cannot pay your rent - you will be required to provide evidence, as this is not a free-for-all discount - some owners can ask the bank to defer their mortgage to reduce your costs. The owner is expected to pass on your evidence of need to the bank in order to apply for approval.
Many of our clients who have reached their bank are being told NO, rental properties are NOT getting a break to pass on to tenants. See article here from CBC. Daily we are hearing of owners getting more options from their banks such as interest-only payments (usually half of the mortgage payment).
Hopefully more options for both Landlords and Tenants will be offered shortly.