A single mother says she has been wrongfully evicted from her apartment in Courtenay.
After several months of not having housing of her own, Tanya Boon and her daughter moved into Hollyridge Manor in July 2019. They lived at the Back Road complex until March 2 of this year. During that period, she said there were times when she struggled to pay the full rent on time, but always managed.
“COVID hit and was very difficult for me, and for Feather, my daughter,” Boon said. “Her school was shut down and my mental health was very much affected.”
She said several traumautic events occurred last year. She was a couple hundred dollars short of paying rent in December and January but managed to pay it a few days after the first. She received an eviction notice in February. The locks were changed March 2, as was the mail key.
Boon also said her belongings were packed up.
“It was an illegal lockout and an illegal pack up,” she said. “I was dealing with medical/mental health issues that prevented me from dealing with it right away.”
The provincial government says a ban on issuing evictions for non-payment of rent, due to COVID, ended Aug. 18, 2020.
Recently, Boon picked up her belongings, but says she is missing numerous items.
“Everything with her was done per the Residential Tenancy Act,” said Laurie Sims, managing broker at Meicor Property Management. “Items were stored and she was given every opportunity for the last couple of months to pick up any of her belongings.”
Simms could not comment further as it was an ongoing process for the last several months.
“We play inside the lines, and follow the rules and the parameters of the Residential Tenancy Act,” she said.
The Ministry of Attorney General encourages tenants with questions about evictions to contact the Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB).
In a statement, the ministry said rent is due in full by midnight on the day it is due, according to the tenancy agreement. In B.C., if rent is not paid by the due date, a landlord may serve a 10-day Notice to End Tenancy for Unpaid Rent or Utilities the day after rent is due. Upon receipt of the notice, a tenant has five days to pay the rent, or file an Application for Dispute Resolution with the RTB.
If a tenant pays the overdue rent in full, then the notice is cancelled and the tenancy continues. However, if a tenant does not pay the overdue rent nor apply to dispute the notice, the tenant is presumed to accept that the tenancy is ending and must move out of the rental unit by the date of the notice.
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