A debate has erupted in a Canadian realtor’s TikTok comments after he made a video that, some believe, empathizes with landlords a bit too much.

Vancouver-based real estate agent Hasan Juma has been in the field for seven years and on TikTok for about three years. He creates educational content about the housing market.

On January 8, Juma posted a video where he compares what it’s like to be a landlord in Ontario versus BC.

“Landlords of newer buildings in BC get screwed, especially compared to Ontario,” he begins. “Here’s why the maximum amount a landlord can raise rent here in BC, whether it’s an older building or a newer building, is just 2%.”

Juma says landlords are getting the short end of the stick in BC due to the rent raise cap, especially if a building is newer and has high strata fees, which may be underestimated at the presale.

“In BC, there’s no way for landlords should be able to recover this cost through appropriate rent increases,” he argued. “But in Ontario, landlords can raise the rent of five, seven, 10% — whatever they need to, provided, obviously, there’s a market for that rental amount to help them cover some of the burden of that expense.”

@hasanjuma BC &lt Ontario when it comes to being a landlord of a newer building #realestate #vancouver #vancouverrealestate #ontario #britishcolumbia #rentalmarket #foryoupage ♬ Get You The Moon – Kina

The video has gotten some attention from landlords, investors, renters, and other real estate agents. While some agree, most think this is a tone-deaf approach, given the high costs of living and rising rents across the country. Using BC and Ontario as an example certainly adds fuel to the fire, as the two provinces have some of the most expensive housing markets in Canada.

“Bro, there’s people that can’t afford rent as is, and you’re complaining about less profits on your surplus housing?” one commenter asked.

“If the landlord can’t afford a tenant not paying for a year, then they are too poor to afford the risk of being a landlord,” argued another.

“It’s an investment for them. If they can’t afford to buy it, sell it. Tenants don’t need to sponsor unexpected costs,” a third commenter added.

Daily Hive reached out to Friday to discuss the video and its reactions.

Over email, he told us that while he understands renters’ frustration with the cost of everything rising, he simultaneously empathizes with landlords, too, as they’re “not immune to these same rising costs.”

“Smaller landlords are an extremely key piece to the rental supply puzzle here in Vancouver,” he said.

“I think there’s a misconception that landlords are an uncaring, wealthy bunch that are only concerned with bottom line profits,” Juma doubled down. “Vancouver has the most ‘mom-and-pop’ landlords in the country, many of whom own a rental unit as part of a modest retirement plan.”

In Juma’s opinion, these “smaller” landlords add much-needed competition against the bigger players and should hence be protected.

He pointed out that with recent increases in the cost of borrowing and high inflation, more challenges are facing landlords, with many being unable to turn a profit from their rentals entirely.

“The maximum allowable rent increase used to be more aligned with inflation in previous years, but this is no longer the case. Inflation is currently running close to 7%, so there’s a wide gap between this and the 2% annual allowable increase,” Juma added.

Some people also think that the information Juma relayed in the video is not entirely factual, in that BC landlords technically can raise rents more than 2%.

The realtor cleared the air about what he meant: “While there is a process for a landlord to apply for a rent increase beyond the allowable limit, this is only approved in ‘exceptional circumstances.’ The landlord would need to show a significant capital expense (which is unlikely in a newer building) or an extraordinary increase in operating expenses — an increase in strata fees would not meet the requirements in my experience. Understandably, the bar is set very high for a landlord to get approved for an above-allowable rent increase. It takes much more than initiative.

Are you a landlord, a renter, or both? What are your thoughts on this debate, especially during a housing crisis that has left buyers and renters in deep uncertainty?

Let us know in the comments.