Legislation Introduced To Remove Barriers For Tenants And Landlords

Legislation has been introduced in New Brunswick to improve protections and remove barriers for tenants and landlords.

It comes as several concerns have been raised by both tenants and landlords during the rental review process.

As well, issues have been raised over rental rates within the province spiking during the pandemic.

The legislation includes limiting rent increases to once every year and prohibiting rent increases within the first year of tenancy.

“Under this legislation, the Residential Tenancies Tribunal would have the authority to review and deny unreasonable rent increases for most tenancies, instead of being limited to tenancies that are five years or longer,” said Mary Wilson, minister of Service New Brunswick in a release.

“This extra step will help ensure the tenant’s new rent amount is comparable to similar rental units in their respective regions,” added Wilson.

Additional amendments introduced include:

• Increasing the authority of the Residential Tenancies Tribunal by allowing it to review all rent increases, not only those that apply to long-term tenancies.
• Increasing the notice period for a rent increase to six months from three to give tenants more time to adapt.
• Giving tenants 30 days to apply to have a rent increase reviewed by the Residential Tenancies Tribunal instead of the current 15 days.
• Eliminating some unnecessary administrative steps for landlords to remove barriers to service.

The review was carried out by a cross-departmental team.

12 recommendations were made involving several government departments and crown corporations.

So far, Service New Brunswick has addressed four recommendations:

• Access and assistance with tenancy matters has been improved through a revamped phone service.
• Legislation has been introduced to modernize the Residential Tenancies Act and accompanying procedures to better meet the changing needs of tenants and landlords.
• A re-design of the Residential Tenancies Tribunal website and processes has been undertaken. The new website will be launched in December.
• Work is ongoing to provide advocacy groups with the tools and information to help renters and vulnerable groups understand their rights such as through presentations and webinars.