If you have any questions about your rights as a tenant in Toronto, please call the hotline at:

416-921-9494

You can also e-mail the FMTA Hotline at [email protected] and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Please try to keep emails brief or specify your questions. More information about how to use our service below.

About the Hotline & InfoHub

What we DO NOT do

Many tenants who call or email the hotline want to explain their situation in great detail so our hotline counsellors can give their general feedback, opinion, suggestion, recommendation, etc. 

Unfortunately, our counsellors are prevented from giving legal advice, so we can never tell a tenant what they should do or give general recommendations, opinions, suggestions, etc.

What we do

The FMTA hotline answers specific questions that tenants have about their rights or options under the law. We can tell you what the law says, how the 'system' works and we can often outline some options you might have for dealing with a situation.  The choice will always be up to the tenant in terms of what they choose to do. 

While we can't tell you what you 'should' do, we can tell you what you 'can' do. 

How to use our service 

Tenants who call our hotline should have a question or list of questions that they are looking to have the hotline answer.  Tenants often want to give us more information about the situation than we need, so its usually best to start with your question and we can ask for more information if we are unable to answer it.

Common examples of questions we are asked include:

• How can my landlord try to evict me?
• How can I force the landlord to do repairs?
• Do I have to do what my landlord just told me to do?
• Is this provision in my lease legal?
• How can I try to get money back from the landlord?

At the FMTA, we don't judge you for how you look, what you do, or your source of income. 

All personal info provided to the FMTA that could identify a caller's identity is kept confidential.  

The FMTA strives to provide a safe, welcoming, non-blaming environment for all tenants and is committed to anti-oppression and harm reduction. We do not condone racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ageism, classism, fat phobia, ableism, indigenous land theft, or any other form of discrimination.

If you do not feel comfortable speaking English on our Hotline service, we can provide services in 150 languages through a telephone interpreting service.

Our Counsellors will also provide you with referrals to community or city agencies, legal clinics, or direct you to other necessary resources. We can also mail, fax or email you information relevant to your situation.

NOTE: the FMTA hotline has a zero tolerance for harassing or abusive behaviour. Calls involving harassment, accusations, abuse, name-calling, yelling, etc towards hotline workers will be terminated immediately. We provide information about what the law says and referrals, not legal advice.

Hours of Operation

MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

The Hotline, email and social media service operates from 8:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

WEEKENDS

The Hotline telephone service is available from 9:00am - 4:00pm on Saturdays.   

AFTERHOURS

After-hours clients can leave a detailed message on our phone, email or social media accounts, which will normally be responded to within 24 - 48  business hours.

The Hotline also maintains information mailboxes which contain information on specific tenant questions. Callers may access these informational mailboxes by simply entering an extension number for the relevant mailbox. If your question can be answered by the information contained in one of those boxes, we encourage you to access it.

I've called a bunch of times and I can't get through!

If you call and the line is busy it means that we're on another call or calling back callers who have left messages. Rather than calling back over and over, if you do not reach a Counsellor immediately please leave a message.

Please only state your name and phone number TWICE as slowly and clearly as possible. Please do not ask your question or leave information about the situation in the message. We will return your call as soon as we can.

The FMTA Hotline & Infohub is funded by the City of Toronto Tenant Support Program

Our office phone number is 416-413-9442. You can also email [email protected] and we'll forward your email to the Outreach team.

Outreach

When our office is informed by the City that a building will be facing an AGI, eviction, maintenance issue or loss of service, we flyer the building and hold a meeting a few days later. Meetings are scheduled at a convenient time and place for tenants -- that means evenings, weekends, and any place in the City of Toronto. We most commonly hold our workshops in the lobby or common spaces of buildings.

Organizing

We help organize tenants who want to dispute the AGI (or eviction), save money off their rent, stop illegal evictions and enforce other rights. Whether tenants want to apply to the City of Toronto's legal service, organize to fight back, self-represent, fundraise themselves or do nothing, we're there to let people know what they can do and the possible outcomes/impacts.

Our services include:

• We give general information on Above Guideline Rent Increases
• We can explain how the Demolition/Conversion process works and help tenants give input into planning applications that affect rental housing in the City of Toronto
• We can help tenants fight back against a landlords own use (N12), purchasers own use (N12) or "renoviction" (N13) eviction
• We can help tenants organize against a lack of building-wide maintenance or a landlord trying to remove building wide services (like parking or storage)  
• We help make referrals to the City of Toronto's new legal service 
• We provide resources and inform tenants about their ability to self-represent at hearings
• We inform Tenants about the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) and what to expect from their hearing at the Board
• We assist tenants in connecting with appropriate resources in Toronto.

General Workshops on Tenant Rights

The Outreach Team also provides general workshops on tenant rights. 

Our workshops are comprehensive and accessible. We cover all aspects of the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), as well as in-depth exploration of specific and timely topics in tenancy law.

The Outreach & Organizing Team is funded by the City of Toronto Tenant Support Program

Tenant Association Development

One of the best ways to ensure your landlord follows the law and honours your tenant rights is to start a tenant association in your building. 

Want to Start a Tenant Association?

Our Tenant Association Organizers can help you set-up, maintain and grow your tenants association.  Learn how to start an association, increase membership, set an agenda, choose leadership and improve living standards for your neighbours and building by contacting Euridice at 416-479-0750 or [email protected] 

Tenant School

The FMTA runs an intensive series of workshops for tenants called the TENANT SCHOOL.  Students of the school get in-depth training on their rights under the law, learn about your rights as a tenant, grassroots activism, and how tenants can work with government to make change. Workshops are taught by lawyers and experienced tenant’s rights advocates. The program is held three or four times a year, and is geared towards tenant activists, tenant advocates, and tenant association leaders.

To find out when the next tenant school is being held or to register, please email Joeita Gupta at [email protected] or call our Outreach team at 416-413-9442.

Civic Engagement 

Do you want to improve tenant rights?

Consultations are held every year at the municipal, provincial and federal levels of government and within the indigenous nations that hold treaty title over Toronto. 

Tenants looking to volunteer with the FMTA and engage in the Civic process to improve tenant rights in Toronto can contact our office at [email protected] or call our Outreach team at 416-413-9442.