Association Report EOLO’S WORK DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC As on a number of past issues, EOLO’s work to support rental housing providers this Spring and Summer included the following activities: • Information sharing about best practices and distribution of those practices • Positioning landlords in the media as reasonable and responsible • Providing template letters to send to tenants. To deal with COVID-19, EOLO’s specific work included: • Dealing with the City about the statements being made to tenants about paying their rent • Providing messaging for use in rent collection, and forwarding CMHC’s messages about the need to pay rent • Communicating with Ottawa Public Health (OPH), and relaying their guidance to keep tenants safe, and landlords free of liability.
EOLO’s specific communications - April to May In the first phase of the pandemic, EOLO took the following steps: • Informed members of the first shut down order (and its general non-application to landlords) • Informed members of the second shut down order,
gaining a good By-law enforcement position on unit turnover work, and informing members about that • Reported on changes affecting landlords, including financial relief for tenants, especially CERB (and its timing), and advice about notices of rent increase to take effect on August 1, including taking the increase even if a landlord defers actually collecting it • Informed members of the City’s updated position allowing more landscaping as essential work • Distributed OPH guidance on showing units • Informed members about best practices about masks in apartment buildings.
EOLO’s specific communications - June to August In the second phase of the pandemic, EOLO took the following steps: • Informed members about the new CMHC Use of Funds rules for upward re-financing • Surveyed members about their views on masks, and the City’s plans • Communicated with the City about the proposed hand sanitizer rules and mask rules; informing members of the new obligations • Informed members about the new City of Ottawa financial support for tenants with rent arrears.
JOIN EOLO FOR YOUR BENEFIT and the benefit of the rental housing industry. In the Fall of 2020, and into 2021, EOLO will be taking action to provide the best support for rental housing in Ottawa. We invite rental housing providers to join EOLO to receive the information we distribute and to coordinate your actions with the actions of other rental housing providers for the good of everyone in the rental housing industry. E-mail admin@EOLO.ca for information about becoming a member of EOLO. 26 – theANNUAL Ottawa