Searching for a Path to Legalized Rooming Houses

Toronto could legalize rooming houses, also known as multi-tenant or lodging houses, in an effort to bring the city's many unpermitted examples of this low-income affordable housing type up to humane standards of health and safety.

1 minute read

November 18, 2020, 6:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Multi-Tenant Housing

Beaty Avenue in Toronto is lined with permitted rooming houses. | Google Streetview

"Toronto’s inconsistent rules about rooming houses — banned in some areas and unregulated in others — have led to tenants living in dangerous conditions," reports Victoria Gibson, sharing the details of a recent report by city staff that recommends legalizing and licensing rooming houses city wide.

"Rooming houses — also called multi-tenant or lodging houses — are an especially affordable form of housing, with tenants renting by the room. They are one of the few private market options for those on government support or low incomes," explains Gibson.

Rooming houses are prohibited in large swaths of the city, but they are found all over the city anyway, a reality that creates dangerous situations for residents. "Often that means houses are run without appropriate permits or inspections," according to Gibson. "Building operators can’t upgrade buildings if they fail to meet requirements like the fire code, because the city can’t issue building permits for rooming houses where they aren’t permitted."

Toronto's consideration of its rooming houses stock comes just a few weeks after the city of Vancouver announced an ambitious plan to pursue $1 billion to purchase single-family occupancy buildings to develop and maintain as affordable housing in the city, in addition to another $30 million.

Tuesday, November 17, 2020 in Yahoo News via Toronto Star

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight