What to know
- Over 132 groups are calling on the province to scrap Bill 60, arguing it would erode tenant protections and heighten housing instability.
- Advocates say the bill would shorten repayment timelines, remove LTB discretion, and eliminate compensation requirements for landlord takeovers.
- Groups also criticize the consultation process, noting the province engaged landlord lobbyists, but excluded tenant organizations.
- Recent data shows homelessness is rising in Ontario, with advocates warning the bill could push more renters into housing instability.
- Tenant groups plan to rally in Toronto on Saturday, calling on the government to withdraw the proposal.
More than 132 organizations are warning the Ontario government that a proposed bill on tenants rights might drive up homelessness “in a way that this government is not anticipating,” while advocates plan to rally in Toronto this weekend.
On Monday, a group of housing organizations released an open letter, raising a series of concerns related to Doug Ford government’s Bill 60 – Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025, and asking the government to rethink the proposal.
The letter was signed by housing rights organizations No Demovictions Ontario and The Encampment Justice Coalition, and co-signed by 132 organizations, including advocates for homelessness, public employees, food banks, local communities, and more.
Bill 60 has received backlash since it was moved by the province last month, proposing a series of controversial changes which would affect tenants and landlords in the province.
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Lindsay Blackwell, an organizer with No Demovictions, tells Now Toronto that there are a series of provisions in the bill, which have raised concerns within the group, including:
- Giving tenants less time and fewer means to pay rental arrears;
- Takes away LTB adjudicators’ ability to consider tenant circumstances before ruling, including job loss, domestic violence, etc.;
- Taking away the provision that required landlords to provide 60 days of notice and one-month-rent compensation if they need to take the unit back, making so that they can give 120 days of notice with no compensation;
- Funding additional resources for sheriffs to carry out evictions, as opposed to spending that money on more LTB adjudicators;
- Many other concerns.
In addition, Blackwell says the groups are also raising issues with the process of consultation for the bill, which she says included involvement from landlord lobbying groups, such as the The Federation of Rental-Housing Providers of Ontario and Building Industry and Land Development Association, who provided quotes of support in the province’s announcement of the bill, while excluding tenants’ groups.
“The process for the bill is also wildly undemocratic…Not only was not a single tenant group consulted, it seems that only the landlord lobbyist was consulted,” she said.
GROUPS WARN BILL COULD DRIVE UP HOMELESSNESS
Among the many concerns, the open letter released on Monday also points to a study by The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) published earlier this year, which revealed that more than 80,000 Ontarians were homeless in 2024, a 25 per cent increase from 2022. The same study also warned that without additional action, the number of homeless people in the province could escalate to 300,000 in 10 years.
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Sara Beyer, Manager of Policy at Canadian Centre for Housing Rights (CCHR), another organization that co-signed the petition, says that by weakening tenant protections and making it easier for landlords to carry evictions, the bill also has potential to worsen the homelessness crisis.
“Renters are already spending more of their income on housing costs than homeowners, while earning less. As rents continue to remain out of reach for many households and with few affordable housing options available, when renters lose their homes, they have nowhere else to go,” she told Now Toronto on Tuesday.
Blackwell also explains that most people who experience homelessness in Canada as a result of not being able to afford rent, as the country faces a shortage of affordable housing.
In fact, a study published by Statistics Canada in 2023, revealed that about 41.8 per cent of unhoused people in the country reported financial issues as their leading cause of homelessness. Other causes included relationship issues, health issues, and relocation.
“It’s not like people would have you believe that it’s a mental health crisis and it’s all of these things, because that’s what they see in front of them, but that’s anecdata, right? It’s not helpful,” Blackwell said.
“There are lots of people who are part of the hidden homelessness crisis. They’re sleeping on couches. They’re sleeping in their cars. They’re doing all these things, and they can’t easily be counted. But when we do the work and we do the research to actually look into those things, we find overwhelmingly that these people simply can’t afford the rent.”
Moreover, Blackwell also says the measures could also disproportionately affect vulnerable tenant groups, including seniors, people with disabilities, and newcomers, who often rely on rent-controlled housing.
GROUPS CALL ON GOVERNMENT TO REPEAL PROPOSAL
In light of the many issues raised, the groups are calling on the Ford government to rethink its Bill 60 proposal, including repealing the Residential Tenancies Act, and engaging in meaningful consultation with tenants and tenant advocacies in relation to the proposal.
“[This proposal] is deeply concerning, especially in this moment of significant economic uncertainty. The government should be proposing measures that protect hard-working Ontarians from losing their homes due to layoffs that are beyond their control, rather than making the lives of renters more precarious,” Beyer said.
In addition, the organizations are also asking Ontario municipalities to advocate against the proposal, and review provisions that could allow them to challenge it, including considering Charter challenges.
Last week, Toronto City Council voted to pass a motion to oppose the bill, which Mayor Olivia Chow said could lead to increased rents and “unfair evictions.”
“About half of Toronto’s residents rent their homes…They deserve stability, fairness and peace of mind that comes from knowing they will not face unfair evictions or sky-high rent increases,” she told reporters before the vote.
TENANT GROUPS TO RALLY
In addition to pleading for government support, Blackwell says the groups are also calling on tenants and advocates across the province to mobilize, including contacting their local councillors, MPPs, and MPs about the proposal.
“People will get empathetic and they’ll get frustrated because they are shut out, and I think that’s understandable and a reasonable response, but you have to recognize that you do have a voice,” she said.
The organizer revealed that the group is mobilizing a rally in Toronto on Saturday, which marks National Housing Day, to voice their opposition to the bill.
The march will begin at 67 Yonge St. E. at 11 a.m. and end at Queen’s Park, and will include speakers, tenant mobilization, and support from local organizations, including labour unions, food banks, and health care workers.
“We know that this government does not give a sh** about what we have to say necessarily right now, but tenants are coming together across this province like never before. I’ve never seen anything like this. They’re pissed off, they’re taking to the streets, they’re making their demands heard and they’re saying: ‘My rights should not be eroded simply because I rent,’” she said.
“My message to Doug Ford on all of this is: ‘You may pass Bill 60, but I guarantee you, once tenants are up and organized across this province, that you won’t be messing with us anymore.’”
