‘Cash for keys’ offers are making people homeless, say housing advocates in northern Ontario

Housing advocates in northern Ontario's largest city say cash-for-keys agreements are leaving people homeless in the long run.

A cash-for-keys offer is when a landlord offers a tenant cash—often the equivalent of two months' rent or more—to move out.

Agreements are a way to bypass Landlord and Tenant Board hearings, which can take months.

Raymond Landry, coordinator of the Sudbury Homeless Network, said the proposals may seem attractive on the surface, but the city's low vacancy rate coupled with high rents means they often fall behind after a couple of months.

“When they take that money and don't know the housing situation as it stands, they'll realize that getting $3,000 or $5,000 isn't going to get you very far in this housing market,” Landry said.

Tenants receiving such offers are often already in a vulnerable position, he said. In many cases, they rely on programs like Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) to subsidize their rent.

Evie Ali, executive director of the Go-Give Project, a charity that supports Sudburians with substance use disorders, described the key-in-exchange agreements as a “loophole in the eviction process.”

Like Landry, she said many people who accept offers end up homeless soon after, and “there's been an increase over the last two years.”

Sherry Jordan, owner of Jordan Group Property Management, which manages about 300 properties in Greater Sudbury, said her group offers tenants cash in exchange for keys every month.

Jordan said landlords will offer a tenant cash in exchange for keys if the tenant has already defaulted on rent.

“Instead of going through the Landlord Tenant Board process, they could go directly to the tenant and offer them some money to move out by a certain date,” she said.

Another reason why landlords may offer a tenant cash in exchange for keys is because they want to sell the property or offer it to new tenants.

Jordan said that when one of her tenants defaults on rent, her property management team often forgives any debt if they accept a cash offer.

She said it would be beneficial for tenants to accept the offer if they were already in arrears and would end up being evicted for that reason anyway.

The cash payment gives them the opportunity to find a place they can afford, she said.

If tenants can't afford market rents in Sudbury, which can cost $1,000 or more a month for a bachelor pad, Jordan said the onus should be on the provincial government to make sure people who rely on programs like Ontario Works and ODSP can meet their basic needs.

“People who live on the assistance that the government is supposed to provide housing subsidies, you know, they rely on that money to keep them housed,” Jordan said.

“And when the government doesn't increase the cost of housing subsidies, despite everything that's going on in society, you know, with all the spending, rent increases, etc., now you're leaving that tenant stranded. Because where do they turn if they're relying on the government to provide housing for them?”

A single person receiving disability benefits can receive up to $1,408 a month to cover basic needs and housing. A single person in Ontario Works can receive up to $733 per month.

MTPL rates are linked to inflation

In an email to CBC, Chris Clark, a spokesman for Ontario Minister of Children, Community and Social Services Michael Parsa, said ODSP rates have increased by 20 per cent since September 2022.

The most recent inflation-related increase was a 2.8% rate hike in July 2025.

Clark said the 400 percent increase in the income tax exemption for ODSP recipients means a person can qualify for an extra $200 a month without affecting the financial benefits of their public assistance.

He also noted the recent increase in Ontario's minimum wage, which reached $17.60 an hour in October.

But the Ontario Living Wage Network says a single person in northern Ontario must now earn at least $21.10 an hour to meet their basic needs.