859 Kennedy Road receives top marks from RentSafeTO

 Toronto’s RentSafeTO program has never been more important. 


The Toronto real estate market is booming, even as the pandemic continues to create obstacles for commerce and trade. That means it’s more crucial than ever to have high standards for apartment buildings that are strictly enforced. 


I’m one of the apartment-building owners that has to meet these requirements, and I couldn’t agree more with the city’s stance on this issue. I would also like to share some details about the recent evaluation of Alto Properties’ apartment building at 859 Kennedy Road. 


RentSafeTO was initially passed in 2017. 


As defined by the City of Toronto, it’s a “bylaw enforcement program that ensures apartment building owners comply with building maintenance standards.”


The program applies to apartment buildings with three or more storeys and 10 or more units. It works on a multi-tiered system based on the building’s rating from the evaluation. 


The top category is for buildings that score between 86 and 100 percent. Any score in that category means the building will be re-evaluated in three years. 


I’m proud to say that our building, 859 Kennedy Road, scored an 87 percent in a report released this January. 


In the lower categories, a score of 85 percent or less requires a re-evaluation in two years. If the building receives a score below 66 percent, the evaluation reoccurs in just one year. If the building scores at 50 percent or lower, then city officials will conduct a full audit. 


The evaluations look at many aspects of healthy and safety in apartment building standards. These individual categories include security, elevators, water issues, guardrails, maintenance of garbage, cleanliness of floors and ceilings, exterior walkways, the presence of graffiti, and many others. Each category receives a score between 1 and 5. 


Again, I am proud to say that 859 Kennedy Road did not receive a score lower than 4 in a single category. 


The RentSafeTO program also has safety measures aimed specifically at fighting the spread of COVID-19 through additional requirements of apartment building owners and operators. 


According to the City of Toronto, those measures “include providing hand sanitizer in common areas, keeping non-essential common areas closed as specified by provincial orders, cleaning frequently-touched surfaces, and posting Toronto Public Health signage.”


The city council has also improved the program since its initial passage in 2017. To encourage even higher standards for apartment buildings, the council voted 24-0 to beef up RentSafeTO in 2019 with new amendments requiring more from landlords to ensure the safety of their buildings and tenants. 


Those additional amendments include:


  • Requiring landlords to post any additional information about fire code violations or pest management activities to their buildings’ tenant notification boards.

  • Requiring landlords to give notice of RentSafeTO visits on notification boards at least 30 days prior to building audits with appropriate contact information for staff.

  • Requiring landlords to post information on the tenant notification board about air-conditioned spaces in the building to include information about other places on the property that offer relief from uncomfortably warm indoor temperatures.

  • Requiring landlords to develop and maintain a capital plan for each rental building that includes a comprehensive five-year forecast extending beyond major capital repairs.


It’s worth pointing out that condos, townhomes, or units in a private home are not part of the RentSafeTO program. If you’re renting in a building that’s not part of the RentSafeTO program  and experience a problem, the City of Toronto requests that you please consult with your landlord first and submit a service request. 

If no action is taken by the landlord and problems persist, you can then contact 311 and the city will investigate.

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