'Unhinged': Realtor calls out Toronto housing market after half a bed listed for rent

A realtor says that a recent Facebook Marketplace listing for a shared bedroom is yet another sign of how “unhinged” Toronto’s rental market has become.

In screenshots of the listing, obtained by CTV News Toronto, the poster was looking to find a roommate to move in as of January. CTV News Toronto could not reach out to the poster for comment as the listing was subsequently removed off Facebook Marketplace.

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“Looking for an easy going FEMALE to share the master bedroom and the ONE QUEEN SIZE BED,” the listing read.

“I have been previously sharing the bedroom which ONLY HAS ONE QUEEN SIZE with roommate I found on Facebook and it worked out perfectly well!)”

The listing also required $1,900 upfront for a rental deposit, which included first and last month’s rent plus an additional $100 for the key fob.

Toronto realtor Anya Ettinger brought attention to the listing through a viral TikTok video first posted in October, which amassed 605,000 views.

@aserealty just when you thought the Toronto rental market couldn’t get any worse, it did. Someone is trying to rent out a space in their queen sized bed in a downtown condo for $900/mo. And the worst part is that someone is actually going to rent this… SEND HELP #rentalmarket #roomrental #torontorentals #rentalcrisis #realestatefail ♬ BGM perfect for item description - Mi-on（みおん）

Ettinger told CTV News Toronto during an interview that she has never encountered a listing like this throughout her years in the industry – though she said she had seen a listing in Oakville renting out a bunk bed in the front foyer of a house for $650 per month.

“I think it shows really how sad it is here. I mean people are – rightfully so – so committed to staying in the city that there is a market for stuff like this,” Ettinger said. “Truthfully, you know, with the other videos I posted too of absurd rentals, people just saying, ‘Well, just don’t rent it.’ But not many people have a choice.”

Even though a recent Rentals.ca report revealed Toronto’s rental market is slowing down, average rent prices were still the among the highest in the country at $2,908 per month.

While many looking to move to the city turn to roommates to cut down on costs, is Toronto reaching a point where renting a bed becomes the norm? But moreover, how is this even legal?

Cassandra Fafalios, an associate lawyer and litigator at Mills & Mills, said most people would be appalled by seeing this sort of listing, but she pointed out that the legality of whether this is allowed is a “very sticky situation” that greatly depends on the circumstances – especially if it is a landlord renting it out versus another tenant.

“Legally speaking, the Residential Tenancies Act really only applies to landlords and tenants, right? If this is a person that’s coming in, and one of the circumstances being that, very generally speaking, that they’re just there with an arrangement with a tenant, for example, there’s no sort of recourse for them with the Landlord and Tenant Board because they’re not technically a tenant with the landlord,” Fafalios said.

There are no definitions of occupant or roommate in the Residential Tenancies Act, the LTB noted online. Since both are not considered a tenant – due to the lack of “contractual relationship with the landlord regardless of whether the occupant or roommate pays a fee to the tenant or subtenant to reside in the rental unit” – they cannot file applications to the board and have no rights or protection in proceedings.

Which is why Fafalios said the legality of renting another half of the bed depends on what role the poster behind the rental plays.

“I think that’s what makes it so sticky of a situation here in Toronto, because a lot of people just try and have these arrangements with people under the table, and they tried to supplement some of their rent – or possibly even some of their mortgage – and, who knows, we don’t know what types of people are renting them out,” Fafalios said.

“If it’s the landlord or the tenant, if there’s no written agreement … you don’t really have the protections in terms of notice requirements that would be served on a tenant, if they were a proper tenant, with rights and obligations. There’s no eviction notice. There’s no obligation to the Landlord and Tenant Board.”

Ultimately, if it came down to it, Fafalios said it would likely result in a breach of contract because they’re not protected under the RTA.

Another way the renter would not be protected is if they shared the kitchen or bathroom with the landlord, Douglas Kwan, director of advocacy and legal services at the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario, told CTV News Toronto.

“It’s very likely in this type of accommodation that they would be sharing those facilities, which would make that tenant vulnerable and without protection under the law, so in that sense, it’s illegal,” Kwan said during an interview in late-October. “In the sense that it’s legal, is that parties can form agreements of occupation and the protections, rights, responsibilities would be up to those individual parties to negotiate.”

“I would be very concerned for the health and safety of anybody who would determine that this would be their last resort to finding housing in Toronto,” Kwan added.

WHAT QUESTIONS SHOULD RENTERS ASK THEIR PROSPECTIVE ROOMMATE BEFORE THEY MOVE SOMEWHERE NEW?

Kwan said to treat your potential future roommate like you’re going into a job interview.

“When you’re meeting with someone who is going to rent their space to you, you can do your due diligence, ask the right questions, you know, ‘What’s included in your rent? What’s the living situation? Is the kitchen or washroom going to be shared by the landlord?’” Kwan said.

While it is allowed for them to ask whether you’re able to afford the rent, Kwan said they can’t for any identifying or sensitive information, like your racial background, date of birth or social insurance number – “that is not appropriate.”