A small, bare-bones apartment near Cabbagetown that garnered gasps over social media on Thursday may pass as an acceptable rental unit under government regulations, and tenant advocates are concerned that it signals a worsening state of affordable housing.The barren unit, listed on Kijiji as a “cute little bachelor,” near Carlton and Sherbourne Sts., elicited strong feelings about the state of Toronto’s heated housing market. Federation of Metro Tenants’ Associations executive director, Geordie Dent, called it a “ridiculous condition to live in” that fills him with a sense of “crushing sadness.”“This entire apartment looks like it was thrown together with duct tape and glue,” he said.Even so, with crumbling brick walls and a storage shelf for bed space, the apartment as it is shown on the advertising website could be acceptable under Ontario’s Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), said Tanya Walker, owner of Walker Law, a Toronto-based law firm specializing in property and franchise law.“In many ways, the regulation provides the bare minimum,” Walker said.Read more: Tenants support group ‘getting crushed’ by demand Ontario government must close loopholes that allow landlords to hike rent, advocacy groups sayNearly half of Canadians think paying rent is a waste of money, survey findsThe Kijiji post says that the apartment has “high ceilings Juliet balcony, loft area for single mattress or storage.” The asking price is set at $1,100 per month.“As far as rent goes, it can be as high as the market will bear when a unit first enters the market,” Walker said.The kitchen, located in the space under the unit’s storage shelf, includes what appears to be a minifridge, hotplate, microwave and a sink with a bucket underneath its pipe. The bathroom offers a sink, toilet, bathtub and a small potted plant.According to the RTA, landlords in Ontario are required to ...
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