Parinam v Miguel

Tenant wins · Toronto · 2025-07-29

Adjudicator

Robert Brown

Dispute

Illegal Charge, Tenant Rights

Amount

<$5K

Landlord

A.M.

Tenant

A.P., S.B., S.B.

What happened

The Tenants applied for the return of their rent deposits, alleging the Landlord illegally retained the money after they vacated the unit. The Landlord, who was himself a commercial tenant sub-leasing the residential units, argued that the Residential Tenancies Act did not apply because he shared a kitchen and bathroom with the tenants. The LTB had to determine whether the Landlord qualified as an 'owner' under the Section 5(i) exemption and whether the deposits were wrongfully withheld for damages and cleaning.

The ruling

The Landlord is ordered to return the rent deposits to the Tenants, totaling $1,698.00 (including the application fee). Specifically, the Landlord must pay $774.00 to Tenant 1 and $874.00 to Tenant 2 and Tenant 3 by August 18, 2025. The Board ruled that the Landlord cannot withhold rent deposits for damages and that the sub-landlord's residential status does not exempt him from the Act if he is not the property owner.