Rental licensing ignites long-running tensions over secondary suites in Brampton

In 2018, The Pointer commissioned Forum Research to survey 999 Bramptonians about a series of major issues facing the city.

Questions about crime, livability, traffic congestion, and trust in local elected officials populated the survey alongside one of Brampton’s ongoing culprits of social division: secondary suites. 

The retrofitting of residential homes to include separate apartment units—whether for a family member or for rent—has long divided Brampton. For many in the city’s large immigrant population these units are a vital stepping stone to more permanent forms of housing, or crucial for multigenerational living arrangements. Established residents complain these units lead to crammed roads, unsightly properties, and lost revenue for City coffers. 

The results of the Forum survey made it clear there is a wide divide among residents. Approximately 47 percent said they thought homeowners should be allowed to add secondary suites, while 33 percent said the units should be banned. Around 20 percent of respondents remained unsure. 

Six years later, the housing crisis has ravaged Brampton. Affordable housing is nearly non-existent. Approximately 91,000 households in the Region of Peel are currently in core housing need, meaning they are living in inadequate housing, or are spending more than 30 percent of their income on keeping a roof over their head. Rental vacancy rates are some of the lowest in the GTA, allowing corporate landlords to charge exorbitant rates for any available units. 

The City’s population increased nearly 11 percent between 2016 and 2021, reaching 656,480. That same year the municipality saw an influx of nearly 15,000 international students. According to a June report from Statistics Canada, 63 percent of them were living in unsuitable housing.

To try and fill this gap in available housing, the City has seen an explosion in the number of secondary suites registered with the municiplaity. In 2019, there were just under 5,000 homes registered. By January of 2022 that number had more than doubled to 10,961.

There are now 21,812 homes registered—a 370 percent increase in 5 years. 

The number registered does not account for illegal units, of which the City once estimated there could be as many as 50,000 across Brampton. 

A City map showing the location of homes with secondary units across Brampton.

(City of Brampton)

According to the City’s mapping of existing secondary units, it is not uncommon for multiple homes on a single street to be retrofitted with secondary suites, or additional residential units (ARUs). The rapid expansion in secondary and even third units has inflamed the existing tensions between residents and created additional impacts.

Driveways are not designed to fit multiple vehicles, leading to city streets becoming congested with parked cars. The Region of Peel issues waste bins on a per address basis, not per unit, leading to calls for overflowing bins and other property standards issues steadily increasing to Brampton’s already overburdened and under-resourced bylaw department—jumping about 20 percent annually since 2021.

A constant concern among the City’s fire department is unregistered units that do not meet fire code safety regulations, creating a significant risk in the event of a house fire. 

Council’s solution to get a handle on this proliferation of units, deal with property standards complaints, and catch those landlords renting units illegally, sometimes leaving tenants in unsanitary, unsafe and overcrowded living quarters, is the new Residential Rental Licensing System (RRL). 

The two-year pilot program requires landlords renting four or fewer units in Wards 1, 3, 4, 5 and 7 to apply for a licence with the City of Brampton and commit to keeping their properties safe and clean. 

To date, there are 1,760 units licensed under the RRL pilot program.

The idea for the licensing program was first proposed by council in November 2022, and following reports from staff that came to council in March and September 2023, including a comparison with what other municipalities are doing, the pilot program was approved in November 2023. Applications went live at the beginning of 2024. 

The pilot project was quickly halted following a flood of complaints from landlords. During a contentious council meeting, a number of residents spoke in support of the program but their voices were drowned out by the crowd of small landlords who chanted for the program’s cancellation. 

A council meeting at the end of January was filled when councillors discussed the proposed Residential Rental Licensing program.

(City of Brampton)

When the revised version of the program was launched near the end of March, several requirements, including a criminal record check for landlords along with inspections of electrical and gas systems in the home, were removed. 

While the changes were welcomed by some landlords, the Brampton Housing Providers Association (BHPA), a newly formed collaborative of small landlords, have continued the push for the program to be scrapped. A petition calling for the program’s cancellation has garnered 8,618 signatures and landlords have taken to the streets to protest, claiming the system unfairly targets them for issues outside of their control and imposes an additional fee for a licence, on top of the registration fee associated with secondary suites. 

Homes with secondary suites are required to be registered with the City. The aim of the ARU program is to make these units “safe, legal and livable”—very similar goals to the RRL program. The RRL comes with a $300 license fee. This fee was waived for the first three months of the pilot program, and will be $150 until the end of September. 

“Before the RRL pilot program, rentals of four or fewer units did not have a level of oversight like other types of apartment rentals,” a City spokesperson told The Pointer.

“Requiring smaller rental operators within the identified areas to obtain a license ensures compliance with Property Standards By-laws, Fire and Building Codes and holds landlords accountable for providing safe living accommodations for renters in Brampton.”

Prior to the RRL, those with secondary units—regardless of whether they were being rented by a landlord, or being used for a family member—were already required to meet all fire and building code standards. All residential property owners in Brampton are required to abide by property standards bylaws, with or without the RRL program. 

Ravi Sohal, one of the founding members of the BHPA, says they are not against regulation for rental units. The organization’s main contention is the RRL program will not fix the issues the City claims it is designed for, and is unfairly targeting small landlords who are already struggling due to high mortgage rates and aging homes. 

“We do not support the illegal units, we do not support the overcrowding because we represent the good landlords who are already abiding with the law and meeting the building requirements,” he told The Pointer.

He questions how the RRL program will help identify illegal units and hold those landlords accountable. If such landlords are not already registered with the City’s ARU system, why would they apply for a licence under the RRL program?

“Shortsighted councillors think that just by creating a by-law it is going to solve the problem, that’s not how things work,” Sohal argues. 

When asked for an explanation how the RRL program will help address illegal units, the spokesperson for the City only said,“The City remains steadfast in its commitment to investigate complaints regarding illegal additional rental units and will apply appropriate fines/penalties where necessary.”

Since the program relaunched in March, the City has issued 26 penalty notices. It is unclear if these are related to units being unlicensed or for other violations. 

During a tele-town hall in February, after the initial launch of the RRL program was reversed, Mayor Patrick Brown explained the City is now treating those with ARUs as businesses. Having a business licensing regime allows for enhanced inspection powers when it comes to illegal units. 

According to Brown, the RRL system will allow City enforcement officers to inspect a unit following a complaint and have the right to entry even if the landlord is unwilling. 

It has not convinced the BHPA. 

“Their objective is not going to be fulfilled by this,” Sohal said. 

In 2018, the City of Brampton created a Secondary Unit Task Force bringing together building, fire and enforcement officials in Brampton to crack down on unsafe ARUs. Sohal believes the City already has the ability to enforce its existing bylaws without resorting to the creation of an entirely new system. 

“They are trying to penalize law-abiding, legal unit owners, who have already legalized,” he said.

A recent report to councillors suggests enforcement of the pilot program—even before expanding it city-wide—could be a challenge for Brampton’s under-resourced bylaw enforcement department. 

A review completed by an external consultant found the City has not invested adequately in its enforcement team to keep up with the rapid population growth. This has led to a department that is riddled with issues, including low morale; a lack of set direction; standard operating procedures that are outdated or simply not followed; poor communication, and a significant shortfall in staff hampering any efforts to enforce existing bylaws. The result of the consultant’s report was the approval of a large crop of new staff members for the bylaw department, including the addition of 26 full-time employees and 14 part-time.

The City of Brampton says it is not just enforcement officers who can make the RRL program a success.

“Residents and landlords all have an important role in keeping Brampton a safe and prosperous community. By obtaining a license, adhering to local bylaws and programs and encouraging others to do the same, everyone can help create a neighbourhood where everyone feels safe, enhancing the quality of life for all residents,” a spokesperson stated. 

This collaborative approach is unachievable for landlords that have difficult tenants, Sohal said. 

Along with reports of overcrowding, unkempt properties, overflowing garbage and other property standards issues persist in Brampton. One of the purposes of the RRL program is to hold landlords accountable for such standards.

Sohal agrees, the buck must stop with the landlords, but there needs to be leniency. While landlords are responsible for the solution, it is bad tenants that are the problem. 

“I can not guarantee what the tenant will do,” he said, noting landlords are left with few options–other than lengthy hearings at the Landlord Tenant Board–to control bad tenants. 

“It’s my property, it’s my responsibility, I can’t wash my hands,” Sohal said. “But we should be paid a fairness.”

The City has created a double standard, Sohal claims. The municipality claims landlords with ARUs are now classified as businesses, but only when it comes to inspections and penalties. 

For example, if a customer was to break a window at a restaurant, it would be the patron who would be charged–not the restaurant owner. However, in the case of landlords and ARUs, it is the tenant’s conduct that often leads to the property standards violation, but it is the landlord who would face the consequences under the RRL program. 

The only recourse for landlords is the LTB, which leaves them sandwiched between the backlogged board and municipal fines. 

For the City, the health and safety of tenants takes precedence. 

“The intent of the RRL program is to protect the health and safety of persons to protect the amenity, character and stability of residential areas,” a spokesperson stated. “Ensuring smoke detectors, carbon monoxide alarms, proper ventilation and safe electrical systems are in place, significantly reduces the risk of accidents, fires and exposure to hazardous conditions.”

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