B.C.’s landlord is trying to evict an 80-year-old tenant over his son’s residency

A BC landlord tried to fire an 80-year-old tenant for having her son in her unit and making noise, but was unsuccessful.

In a recent dispute, a landlord had given his tenant a one-month notice to end the tenancy for several reasons, including that there were an unreasonable number of occupants in the unit, that other tenants were being disturbed, that the health and safety of other residents were seriously endangered, and failure to comply with a material lease term.

The lease started on September 15, 2015; the landlord said the monthly rent was $559, while the tenant said it was $636. The landlord will retain a $200 security deposit.

The landlord has submitted three pieces of evidence to substantiate the reason for terminating the lease. One involved a letter to the tenant, dated April 20, 2023, about “reports” of an unregistered resident in her suite. Another, dated April 28, 2023, involved a noise complaint from another tenant.

The last letter, dated April 29, was of an encounter the caretaker had with a “male resident of the unit,” who she claimed raised his voice when asked how long he would say. The manager did not feel “comfortable” during the exchange.

Landlord claims son tenant was there ‘for a long time’

The landlord believed that the tenant, an 80-year-old senior, had moved the male resident, her son, into her one-bedroom apartment and that he had lived there for a “long time.” The house is a place for seniors or people with disabilities.

The landlord said they asked the tenant for proof that the man lived elsewhere, but she did not comply. They sent a warning letter to the tenant stating that he must be moved out of the unit within seven days and that they would conduct an inspection on April 28, 2023.

The landlord also submitted a letter from a tenant living below the senior claiming that a loud banging would cause the lights in her unit to flicker and her display windows to shake. She said it happened during the day and between 9:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. and between 1 a.m. and 2:30 a.m.

The tenant said she never received the complaint and the landlord confirmed they didn’t give it to her because she wasn’t home when they tried.

The caretaker said the landlord’s son asked her for some tools to make repairs in his mother’s unit. When she asked him how long he was staying, she claimed he was intimidating and raised his voice.

Tenant said her son never lived there

The tenant said her son and grandchildren visited her and her son took care of her unit while she was on vacation. The rail in her bathroom was broken and he was fixing it for her.

Even though her son did not live with her, the tenant did not think it was the landlord’s job to know his address.

The tenant claimed that she made little noise and did not wear shoes in her carpeted room; the only noisy thing she did was vacuuming.

The Residential Tenancy Division ruled in favor of the tenant, noting that the landlord had failed to prove that her son lived in the unit. It also said one noise complaint (if true) from a tenant did not constitute a “significant nuisance” to other residents.

The tenant’s request to terminate the lease notice period of one month was granted.