Zhaojun Xu held his breath and transferred the money. The $3,142.50 deposit depleted her bank account, but she needed a place for herself and her adult son to live.
A few weeks later, after many back-and-forths with the landlord, Xu started to panic because she still didn’t have a lease signed and didn’t have an apartment.
“At that time, I feel very uncomfortable and feel that something is wrong,” Xu said in an interview on Monday. “And I ask them to show me the lease. They never show me.”
Xu gave up and withdrew her application in September, but the rental company did not refund her money. Her son found another job to help support the family, but with the help of a local nonprofit she volunteers with, he ended up living in a hotel for several weeks. Ta.
Halifax legal aid groups say the deposit Xu paid to secure the apartment was illegal, but affordable housing is becoming increasingly scarce and people are becoming more desperate. This practice is becoming more common.
Sidney Blum said Dalhousie Legal Aid has at least three clients trying to recover deposits from Olympus Properties. (Hans Fanfong/CBC)
“People feel pressured to pay these kinds of costs because they know it’s very difficult to find a place to live,” said Sidney Bloom, community legal officer at Dalhousie Legal Aid Services.
“Landlords know people are in a desperate situation and frankly a lot of bad actors are taking advantage of that.”
Property records show Mr. Blum is representing Ms. Xu in her fight to recover thousands of dollars she paid to Olympus Properties, a property management company that owns at least 70 residential and commercial buildings in Nova Scotia. acts as an agent.
Bloom said rental companies are implementing “schemes” that will affect many tenants.
Landlords can legally collect half a month’s rent as a security deposit.
According to the state department that oversees residential rental law, the maximum a landlord can charge as a security deposit is 50% of one month’s rent, but only if a lease is signed.
“Anyone who has been charged an application fee for an apartment should apply to the Residential Rental Program to get that money back,” Nova Scotia Department of Services spokeswoman Rachel Boomer said in an email.
CBC News reviewed communications between Mr. Xu and an employee of Olympus Properties, which revealed that although Mr. The last month’s rent was $2,095. The letter also stated that funds must be received within six hours.
When presented with the text of Olympus Properties’ letter, a spokesperson for another department said: “The Rental Housing Act makes it clear that charging an application fee is not permitted. Landlords are not allowed to charge for last month’s rent. It is also not recognized.”
In an email to CBC News, Olympus Properties said it followed the correct procedures under the Rental Housing Act and only charged half a month’s rent as a deposit.
“Olympus Property Management also never charges fees for applications for our units,” the email said. “Application is completely free and the rental application form is easily accessible on our website.”
The company did not discuss the specific situation, but instead referred to its policy: “Currently, we do not comment on issues before the Director of Rental Housing.”
Other complaints against Olympus
Kylie Clark, a former tenant of Olympus Properties, said at one point during her tenancy she was asked for a 30% rent increase.
When she told the company that this was illegal based on the state’s temporary rent cap, the offer she had been given for a new fixed-term lease was rescinded.
“It’s completely suspicious from start to finish,” Clark said in an interview Monday. “I’ve been renting all my life and I’ve had to be more vigilant in terms of watching what they’re doing and being aware of the little sneaky things they’re trying to do. Never.”
Zhaojun Xu has been approved to rent a room in the building at the intersection of Charles Street and Gottingen Street in Halifax’s north end. (Paul Poirier/CBC)
Clark said that when she left, the company tried to keep $250 of her damages, so she had to fight to get it back. CBC News also spoke to other tenants. They said there was no damage to the room, but they had to go to small claims court to get their security deposit back from the company.
Olympus Properties said in an email to CBC that it has “never withheld anyone’s deposit without a valid reason.”
Bloom said Dalhousie Legal Aid has at least three clients in bond situations similar to Olympus Properties, and receives weekly complaints about lack of repairs and other matters such as intimidation.
But Blum says it’s not just this landlord.
“In a properly functioning rental system, there would be some mechanism at the state level to crack down on landlords who repeatedly violate the law, but unfortunately we don’t have that here,” she said.
Blum noted that both tenants and landlords have been pushing for residential tenancy enforcement for years, but the idea was killed by the Houston government in September.
Mr. Xu is awaiting a hearing in November.
When Ms. Xu filed a complaint with the Residential Tenancy Program, the company offered to refund $900 of the $3,142.50 she paid. She said she did not accept the offer and is currently awaiting a hearing on Nov. 5.
She found a new home last week and would like her deposit returned in full.
“My son is very sad. My husband also blames me. He said you threw away the money,” Xu said. “That’s a lot of money. So I’m very disappointed and very stressed.”
