How Small Landlords in Ontario Should do Research: Resources and Methods
The internet was supposed to usher in the age of information, and in many ways it has. However, social media threw a few tsunami-sized ripples into online information, distorting it and making it tougher to sort out correct from incorrect. Now, we have AI further muddying those murky waters.
It’s very important for landlords to have the right facts, especially if they are using them for a Landlord and Tenant Board hearing, or are doing anything else involving the law. Sorting out the good from the bad during your research is an extra step that can save you from making big mistakes.
Authority #1: Landlord and Tenant Board Website
The Landlord and Tenant Board has an easily accessible site that has nearly everything you need on it for any issue. Anything else you hear or read should be fact-checked against resources on this site. They have helpful explainers beside the typical forms you need and brochures about common issues. Ideally, this should be your first and last stop for information, unless you need further explanation of something you see on the site.
Resources From Small Ownership Landlords of Ontario
The Small Ownership Landlords of Ontario (SOLO) association has a great resource section for more common issues. SOLO works on behalf of small housing providers to lobby the government for better regulations and navigate issues with problem tenants.
Facebook and Reddit: Good for Quick Questions With Fact-Checking Afterwards
While online groups on Facebook and forum sites like Reddit can contain some good information if you need immediate feedback, you don’t want to start filling out legal forms based on advice you get there. They are great for immediate feedback and to have quick questions answered by other landlords who may have experienced the same issue, but both sites are filled with misinformation that needs to be fact-checked – especially Facebook groups.
ChatGPT, Google AI Summaries, Gemini, and Other AI Tools
Despite what Silicon Valley may want you to believe, AI isn’t quite ready to solve the world’s problems – and definitely not ones relating to your rental property. Famously, it has gotten cases thrown out of court and even lawyers disbarred for not fact-checking their legal documentation and/or cases produced with AI tools.
It’s the same thing with information for landlords. You may want to use tools like Google’s Notebook LM to help you parse and summarize longer documents, but you don’t want to replace your paralegal with a brief written for your LTB hearing with AI.
It’s the same thing with AI summaries that you’ll find at the top of Google search. While we’re honoured to be featured in some of them, they generally contain legal information about the Residential Tenancies Act and should be rigorously fact-checked before use in any legal proceedings. All you have to do with these AI summaries is scroll past them, or go to the source articles for them to see if they contain better information.
How to Research and Act on Landlord Matters
Follow these steps to make sure you have the right data.
- Do an internet search. Skip the AI summaries and pick articles/pages that look like they are well-researched and read well.
- If your matter involves anything to do with the Residential Tenancies Act, start on the Landlord and Tenant Board resource page. Only look up things you don’t understand from that page using the method in Step 1. The LTB is the authority for everything related to the RTA. The SOLO resource page is good for simpler explanations.
- If you just have a quick question that needs an immediate answer, post it on the appropriate subreddit on the Reddit website, or do a search on Reddit for your question. Avoid Facebook groups, unless you have one you really like and trust answers from specific users. Do not look for information on Instagram or TikTok. Any answer you get on social media or Reddit should be fact-checked by going to the LTB site or the SOLO resource page if your question isn’t LTB-related.
- Consider hiring a legal professional if you have a matter that you don’t fully understand and need help with.
Ask Our Property Management Experts About Anything
If you hire us as your property management company, you can ask us about anything you want and chances are very good we’ll know the answer. After hundreds of properties and thousands of tenants, we have seen it all and know the ins and outs of more complex situations.
We know how the RTA has been changed over time, what you need to do at move-in and move-out, and what qualifies as a problem you may need a lawyer or paralegal for. You’re much better off paying a property management company to look after your rental and your investment than you are relying on a bunch of strangers on the internet to pass on their mistakes to you.
