GTA eviction filings surge 20% as rent arrears soar past $10,000 for many tenants

More tenants across the Greater Toronto Area are falling behind on rent as housing costs increasingly outpace their incomes, with eviction filings climbing sharply over the past three years.

Landlord and Tenant Board applications for non-payment of rent reached 45,435 in 2024-25, up from 41,386 the previous year and 37,690 in 2022-23—a 20 percent increase over three years. These filings now account for roughly half of all Landlord and Tenant Board applications, according to Ontario's data.

The Toronto Rent Bank distributed $8.8 million in grants last year, compared to $6.4 million in 2022, yet demand continues to outpace resources. Gladys Wong, executive director of Neighbourhood Information Post, which runs the Toronto Rent Bank, said the gap between need and assistance is widening. "I think that a lot of people whose income used to be relatively decent in the past is no longer able to pay for everything, especially if they have children," Wong said.

Arrears amounts have grown particularly acute. "In the past when people applied for the rent bank, their arrears would be a few thousand dollars. But right now it's not uncommon to see people coming to the rent bank with their arrears over $10,000 or even $15,000," Wong said. She noted an influx of students struggling with high rents.

The pressure extends across the region. Peel Region saw service requests for housing supports jump 78 percent since 2022 to nearly 21,000 last year, with a subsidized housing waitlist of 37,060 households—up 29 percent in two years. Elizabeth Storti, senior director of housing services at Peel Region, cited a lack of movement in the system, with only 240 households housed from the waitlist last year.

York Region faces the sharpest increases: its subsidized housing waitlist grew 49 percent since 2022 to over 22,000 households. Jody DeGagne, general manager of housing and homelessness services for York Region, noted the region has the highest proportion of residents spending 30 percent or more of their income on housing across the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton.

Daryl Kaytor, director of housing services for Halton Region, identified insufficient income and high rent as primary barriers for residents seeking support, while Durham Region reports that rent arrears dominate emergency financial assistance requests.