Toronto will now crack down on bad landlords

The Scarborough subway might be getting all of the attention at this month's city council meeting, but there's a whole lot of other important stuff on the agenda.

Today, council voted to adopt a new by-law for apartment buildings, which would help crack down on bad landlords to better protect tenants across the city.

Council voted 40-1 in favour of the new apartment bylaw, effective July 1. Mammoliti the only opposition #TOpoli

— Ahmed-Zaki Hagar (@ahmhagar) March 29, 2017

This new by-law will let inspectors from the city's licensing and standards division keep tabs on rental properties of three or more storeys and 10 or more units.

It features a slew of requirements regarding cleanliness and pest control as well as numerous other stipulations, including that building owners register with the city and develop a systems to track and respond to maintenance requests.

Considering our current real estate climate, it's not surprising that rentals were at hot topic today's council meeting.

Pleased that Council approved @PaulaFletcher30 motion to confirm support for @Peter_Tabuns bill to protect tenants. pic.twitter.com/7KtLhf84EG

— Janet Davis (@Janet_Davis) March 29, 2017

Councillors also voted 32-11 to approve Mary Fragedakis's motion in support of NDP MPP Peter Tabuns' Rent Protection For All act, which would bring rent control to condos and apartments built (and occupied) after November 1991.