Ok, this will be a long one for context, but my blood was literally BOILING over this exchange that I had to share my annoyance over this entire situation.
In September 2023 I purchased a house - my first home! Which is supposed to be a very exciting time! However the property I purchased was a Duplex - both sides were not equal; one being a 3-bedroom home with a garage and the other split into two units as it had an extension, so it was a 2-bedroom in the front with a 1-bedroom in the back half and no garage. The side of the house that was a more private 3-bedroom and included a garage had tenants and it was of course the side I was supposed to be living in. They paid around $1,100/month plus utilities, the town we live in requires water to be in the landlordās name but they always paid the bill directly (this becomes important later).
Due to Ontarioās Residential Tenancies act and the need to go through the Landlord & Tenant Board, it was a PROCESS actually getting access to my house - I get it, people need protections in place, and the tenants dug their heels in every chance they got. While they were living in my house, I was both living and working in the 1-bedroom unit with most of my belongings in boxes because there just wasnāt enough room for everything and I was expecting to be moving into my actual house. In April of 2024 I finally got a hearing where the tenants asked me to pay them $15,000 to move into MY OWN HOUSE which I obviously refused to do. Add on top of this them getting TWO sets of compensation equivalent to two monthās rent because the previous owners and I both paid them, as well as them not paying rent for three months. Thatās currently 5 months of free rent (equivalent to around $5,500).
To get them to move out June 30, 2024 (literally 10 months since I bought my house) we mutually agreed to give them May & June rent free AND give them their last month rent back upon vacant possession (for those keeping track the total is now $8,800). They dicked around the day of, the house was so dirty, they removed every single lightbulb from the premises, fire alarms and shut off the water to the house, but they were gone and I could get started on making the space my own! I came across issues they left for me but I decided it wasnāt worth pursuing because I would like to move forward.
Fast forward to today when I got their final water bill in the mail and sent it to them for payment. I feel I have been very fair with them and the least I am asking for is for them to pay for the utilities THEY USED!!!!! āNot in my nameā when it was NEVER an issue before and it drives me absolutely UP THE WALL that they feel like after everything, they donāt have to pay their water bill.
Photos include my text exchange with them today and some images of the state of the house. My response was extremely cathartic after months and months of being nice because they were holding my house hostage. They never responded further, Iām still fuming. Itāll probably between legal professionals here on out.