THUNDER BAY — The former occupant of a rental housing unit in the County Park subdivision has been ordered to reimburse the unit's owner for the cost of repairs.
Evidence presented to the Landlord and Tenant Board indicated most of the damage was caused by pets.
In a decision released earlier this fall, the board held the tenant responsible for costs totalling $5,810.
After living there for almost five years, the woman vacated the unit in June 2022, but the landlord's agent testified at a hearing that it couldn't be rented for another nine months because extensive renovations were required.
Photos of the damage were submitted as evidence.
The owner's agent said the tenant had pets that were allowed to urinate inside, which caused damage to the floor and even the sub-floor.
The board summarized the landlord's description of the condition of the floors as follows:
"The main floor was damaged throughout. In the kitchen, the upper coating of the tiles was missing. In the living room, the floor is discoloured and damaged. The sides are lifting and scratches are visible. On the upper floor, there are deep scratches on the floor of the bedrooms...[and] pieces of floor missing,"
Baseboards were chewed up, and there were some deep scratches consistent with damage that could be caused by dogs.
It cost the landlord almost $4,000 to replace the floor.
The owner also testified the unit was left in unsanitary condition, and smelled so strongly of tobacco and marijuana smoke that it had to be repainted at a cost of $1,500.
According to the order issued by the Landlord and Tenant Board, the former tenant "overall...took responsibility for the damage" but was unwilling to pay for it all, stating that the landlord had initially claimed $6,000 but now wanted up to $8,600, which she described as unfair.
She accepted she could have left the unit cleaner, but did what she could do under her circumstances, and "feels bad for the lack of cleanliness."
The woman also testified that the floor in the unit was not new when she moved in, and that some of the other issues the landlord noted – such as a scratched bathtub and a broken stove – were present as well.
The board decided the owner was entitled to only one-third the cost of reglazing the tub.
Besides awarding damage costs of about $5,800, it ordered the former tenant to pay for the landlord's cost of filing the application, for a total of $5,996.00.
Failure to remit the full amount by the end of September of this year would trigger an annual interest rate of seven per cent on the balance.
