After a long COVID-19 lockdown – Ontario is finally starting to reopen. This is great news for people, communities, and our Province.
Today, (June 2nd) the Government is lifting its Stay-at-Home Order and on June 14th Ontario is set to enter Step One of its Roadmap to Reopen.
What does that mean for real estate? Three things:
General Restrictions Are Still in Place – For Now
Today, Ontario is allowing the Stay-at-Home Order to expire. As a result, most of the restrictions related to non-essential business, activities and gatherings remain in place.
REALTORS® should continue to follow all existing public health guidelines, limit in-person business as much as possible, use virtual tools and conduct scheduled showings only.
OREA’s Guidance for Safe In-Person Showings is available on OREA’s COVID-19 Information Hub.
Residential Evictions Are Resuming
Second, when Ontario enacted the Stay-at-Home Order it paused enforcement of residential evictions. The pause applied to evictions orders for all tenancies subject to the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), including those already issued by the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB)but not yet carried out.
With the end of the Stay-At-Home order, OREA has learned that the government is also ending the pause on the enforcement of resident evictions. That means that eviction orders for all tenancies subject to the RTA will resume effective today.
The LTB is carrying on most of its business using virtual video conferencing tools. Members who own investment properties or who are supporting clients, can visit the LTB website to learn more.
According to the Government, if the stay-at-home order is extended or reintroduced, be it province-wide or focused on specific regions, the suspension of residential eviction enforcement could be extended as well.
Inter-Provincial Travel Still Restricted
The Ontario government has announced that it has extended its ban on interprovincial travel until June 16 as part of its emergency measures. The ban, which applies to non-essential travel, affects Ontario’s land boundaries with Manitoba and Quebec.
OREA Members can cross interprovincial borders for essential business purposes. OREA has drafted template letters to support Members in navigating border checkpoints.
Looking Ahead
OREA has reached out to its key contacts in government and assembled the below information about what else Members can expect from the Province’s Reopening Roadmap when it comes to real estate.
The Roadmap to Reopen is a three-step plan to safely and cautiously reopen the province and gradually lift public health measures.
The plan is based on:
- The province-wide vaccination rate
- Improvements in key public health and health care indicators
Members looking for more general information should go to the Ontario Government’s website.
Note: This timeline and the below information is subject to change. OREA will communicate updates to Members when new information comes to light.
Tell Us What You Think About Open Houses
OREA is currently advising the government on open houses and Step Three of the Reopening Plan. We will be surveying Members to collect their feedback and will be communicating it to government.
If you are already a Member of OREA’s Research Community, you will receive a link to the survey today. If you are not yet a Member of the Research Community, click the link below to complete a 3-minute introduction survey to register. Once completed, you’ll receive an email to confirm your registration.
www.joinorearesearch.com
Thank you,
David Oikle
OREA President
Brampton Real Estate Board 