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Manuela Vega

@manuelavega.bsky.social
59 followers 30 following 53 posts

Business and housing reporter @thestar.com

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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
Renters are vocal, organized and more influential than ever. Politicians are taking note. My piece today on how the tenant movement is influencing Toronto’s election: @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Why Toronto’s next council could be decided by renters
Renters are vocal, organized and more influential than ever as tenant rights move to the forefront of the city’s housing debate.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
A group of Parkdale tenants have ended their six-month rent strike after they say property management company MetCap Living agreed to withdraw a request to hike rents at their rent-controlled apartments 5.4% above the guideline amount. Latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Parkdale tenants end six-month rent strike after landlord withdraws AGI request
Landlord MetCap had asked Ontario’s Landlord and Tenant Board to raise rates in the rent-controlled Toronto building 5.4 per cent above the provincial guideline.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The federal government has opened applications for a $1.5-billion program that helps community housing providers acquire and preserve “at-risk” affordable rental properties. @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Federal government launches $1.5-billion program to preserve affordable rental housing
The fund is meant to help non-profits to buy affordable homes to keep them from being lost to redevelopment or conversions on the private market.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
A massive new development is coming to Prince Edward County that could change it forever My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
A massive new development is coming to Prince Edward County that could change it forever
The Base31 development could more than quadruple Picton’s population. A recent lawsuit raises concerns about what local residents will get back
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Transit investment is “transforming” land values and rental revenue expectations in some areas, leading to displacement, a researcher explains. A new report examines how landlord ownership, eviction filings, and other “pressures” play a role. My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/evi...
thestar.com
In two Toronto communities near new transit, nearly 1 in 10 face eviction. How can we protect more tenants?
A study of five communities near new UP, Finch West or Eglinton LRT stops found four saw higher eviction rates between 2010 and 2023 than the citywide figure.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
A Yorkville condo just sold at a $450,000 loss. Such losses have become increasingly common in Toronto amid the market downturn, and while luxury homes have been more resilient against the trend, high-end condos haven’t gone totally unscathed. My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
A luxury Yorkville condo just sold at a $450,000 loss, as the condo crash hits the high-end market
While Toronto’s luxury market has proven more resilient, realtors say it isn’t immune to back-to-office mandates and global uncertainty.
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Toronto Star @thestar.com · 03/08/2026
WestJet and CUPE local 8125 reached a tentative agreement this morning, one day after the union launched a strike that led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights during the long weekend. ✈️ It wasn’t immediately clear how soon operations would resume. @manuelavega.bsky.social has the latest:
thestar.com
WestJet and flight attendants’ union reach tentative deal to end strike
The two sides agreed to a tentative deal early Monday morning, but it wasn’t immediately clear when flights would resume.
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Toronto Star @thestar.com · 26/07/2026
Amid the condo market downturn, some GTA developers are setting their sights on accessible rental housing — including ramped walkways, elevators, and fully accessible washrooms — as a way to get projects off the ground and to stay competitive. New from @manuelavega.bsky.social:
thestar.com
Condo crash’s silver lining: these Toronto developers see profit in building for seniors
The condo crash has some builders looking to court Toronto’s aging population with accessible rentals in highrises and townhomes.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Gift link: www.thestar.com/gift-redeem?...
thestar.com
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
CAPREIT, one of Canada’s largest landlords, has lost its appeal against a group of Toronto tenants in a rent-controlled building who said they were charged above-guideline increases for longer than permitted. My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/cou...
thestar.com
Court rules one of Canada’s largest landlords overcharged Toronto tenants on rent increases
Divisional Court ruled CARPREIT should have removed AGI increase after 10 years.
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Amber Shortt @amber7shortt.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Ontario's HST rebate has done little to help Toronto's market. Multiplexes might be the exception. From @manuelavega.bsky.social: www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Prices are dropping for these niche Toronto homes in family-friendly neighbourhoods. Will it last?
Prices are down for these ‘missing middle’ units in lowrise neighbourhoods, but experts say builders are up against the clock.
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Toronto Star @thestar.com · 22/06/2026
The expanded HST rebate announced in March continued to boost new GTA home sales in May, but confusion on how it works led some buyers to hold off, according to the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). Here's a closer look from @manuelavega.bsky.social:
thestar.com
HST boost led to nearly fourfold increase in Toronto-area new single-family home sales in May
Overall new home sales remained below historic levels, dragged down by new condo sales, says Toronto builders group.
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Toronto Star @thestar.com · 22/06/2026
#Exclusive: After months of delays, Ontario’s HST rebate program — now expanded from first-time buyers to all buyers — is officially launching today. 🏘️ New from @clarriefeinstein.bsky.social:
thestar.com
Expanded HST rebate on new Ontario homes launches Monday after three-month wait
After a three-month wait, the federal government announced it is making the regulatory changes that will see buyers save up to $130,000 on a new home.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
The landlord of the troubled Toronto apartment building at 500 Dawes Rd. is facing a fine of more than $300,00 over non-compliance with fire safety rules @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Landlord of troubled 500 Dawes fined more than $300,000 for fire safety violations
The Toronto landlord was sentenced last month to 15 days in custody over violations at another property.
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Toronto Star @thestar.com · 14/06/2026
The 905 Downturn: This four-bedroom home in Brampton sold last week for $1.25M, $950,000 less than it sold for in 2022. 🏡 It’s, perhaps, an extreme example of a trend that’s been playing out across the GTA in recent months. New from @manuelavega.bsky.social:
thestar.com
‘Bigger homes, bigger problems’: Behind this Brampton home’s $1-million loss
The four-bedroom, two-storey home sold for $2.2 million in February 2022.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Building some 20,000 new social housing units in the GTHA while renovating existing stock could generate nearly $50 billion in GDP over the next 25 years, a new report has found. My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Building more Toronto-area social housing could give the economy a $50-billion boost, report says
According to researchers, adding 20,000 more homes and renewing existing housing stock would also add nearly 15,000 jobs by 2050.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
Really interesting, thank you for sharing!
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
Your landlord is offering you thousands of dollars to move out. Should you take it? My breakdown of cash-for-keys deals in the @thestar.com today: www.thestar.com/business/per...
thestar.com
My landlord is offering me a lot of money to leave. Should I take it?
They’re legal cash offers to get tenants to leave. Here's why these deals may not be as sweet as they seem.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
A Toronto landlord bought a 53-unit building in 2023. It has issued at least 56 eviction notices since My latest for @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
A Toronto landlord bought a 53-unit building in 2023. It has issued at least 56 eviction notices since
Many of the eviction applications at the 53-unit 80 Guestville Ave. apartment building are for renovations, several are for the use of air conditioning units, and a few are for unpaid rent.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
An Etobicoke mom of two has won an appeal against her landlord, who fought to evict her when her husband — the sole person named on the lease — terminated the tenancy agreement after police removed him from the home over domestic violence. My latest for @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/wom...
thestar.com
Woman facing eviction after husband ended tenancy wins case against landlord
Divisional Court found the Toronto woman is a tenant despite the lease only being signed by her husband, who was removed from the home for domestic violence.
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Alessia Passafiume @alespassafiume.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Ontario Regional Chief Abram Benedict, who is a co-chair of the Jay Treaty Alliance, told me he’s aware of at least one First Nations individual who was detained by ICE. “He was returned to Canada and they did seize his certificate of Indian status,” Benedict said. www.thestar.com/politics/fed...
thestar.com
First Nations warn members to be cautious when entering U.S. following ICE actions
OTTAWA - Several First Nations are warning their members to be wary of crossing the border into the United States in response to immigration enforcement raids and the detention of
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Financialized landlords disproportionately apply to evict in Black neighbourhoods, study finds @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Financialized landlords disproportionately apply to evict in Black neighbourhoods, study finds
Findings show the eviction applications rates were five times higher in high-income, majority Black neighbourhoods than financialized landlords’ citywide average.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Divisional Court is set to decide whether a Toronto woman can stay in her rental home after her husband, who police removed over domestic violence and who is the leaseholder, terminated the lease and she and her kids faced eviction My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/wom...
thestar.com
Woman fights eviction order after husband removed from home for domestic violence ends tenancy
Division Court is set to rule if the wife and children can stay in the home after her husband and sole lease holder ended the agreement after being removed from the home over domestic violence.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
These Toronto renters say their needs were ignored while landlords made renovations in empty units While financial landlords say renovations are needed to modernize old rental stock, advocates say the practice is part of a profit-maximizing strategy. www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
These renters say their needs were ignored while their landlords did ‘amazing’ renovations on empty units
These renters say their needs were ignored while their landlords did ‘amazing’ renovations on empty units. A landlords group says renovations are necessary to update Toronto’s aging rental stock.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 29/12/2025
UHN is rolling out Ontario’s first hospital-based homelessness and eviction prevention program. “This is preventative medicine,” says Dr. Andrew Boozary. I spoke with community health workers about the impact the program is already making for @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/thi...
thestar.com
‘This is preventative medicine.’ Toronto hospital starts $1-million fund to help patients with rent
‘This is preventative medicine,’ says Dr. Andrew Boozary with the University Health Network, as research shows a link between evictions and worse health outcomes. The fund will help patients on a case...
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 29/12/2025
Yana Miriev, owner of Toronto’s grocer and cafe Finch Store, was ready to “close the door” of her neighbourhood shop. Then a last-minute council motion changed everything. My latest for @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/own...
thestar.com
Toronto's Finch Store is looking to the future
Owner Yana Miriev was stuck in zoning limbo and ready to 'close the door.' Then a surprise move by council green-lit shops and cafes like hers on some neighbourhood streets.
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Sandra Smiley (she/her) @sandrasmiley.bsky.social · 22/12/2025
‘This is preventive medicine’: Toronto hospital starts $1-million fund to help patients with rent via @manuelavega.bsky.social www.thestar.com/news/gta/thi...
thestar.com
‘This is preventative medicine.’ Toronto hospital starts $1-million fund to help patients with rent
‘This is preventative medicine,’ says Dr. Andrew Boozary with the University Health Network, as research shows a link between evictions and worse health outcomes. The fund will help patients on a case...
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
Canadian developer Pinnacle International is holding off on plans to demolish the Toronto Star’s old office building at 1 Yonge St. in fresh hopes of converting the existing building into a luxury hotel. @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
The old Toronto Star building at 1 Yonge will live for a little while longer — as a luxury hotel
Pinnacle is holding off demolishing the Star’s home base for 51 years, which is set to be part of a planned community including Canada’s tallest skyscraper.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
Fixed mortgage rates are likely at their “lowest point this year,” experts say @thestar.com www.thestar.com/business/fix...
thestar.com
Fixed mortgage rates are likely at their ‘lowest point this year,’ experts say
“We’re seeing the weaker economy, paradoxically, is allowing more people into the real estate market,” said Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
Despite the Ford government’s decision not to change security of tenure rules for now, Bill 60 would still “whittle down” tenant rights at the Landlord and Tenant Board, advocates say My latest for @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Ford government’s Bill 60 would ‘whittle down’ tenant rights at the Landlord and Tenant Board, advocates say
The province, which walked back a proposal to allow eviction when leases end, is still pushing ahead with Landlord and Tenant Board changes that housing advocates say favour landlords.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
Doug Ford ending automatic tenancy extensions would be ‘devastating’ for Ontario renters, advocates warn My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Doug Ford ending automatic tenancy extensions would be ‘devastating’ for Ontario renters, advocates warn
The province's bill 60 proposes to 'consult on alternative options on lease agreement expiry' to open up more rentals.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
Yes, the city placed the blocks and fencing the next day
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
The move has sparked more frustration for members of the Church of Saint Stephen-in-the-Fields, who see the blocks and fencing as an “aggressive” move that makes the church look uninviting and bars it from using the courtyard at all. www.thestar.com/news/gta/the...
thestar.com
The city dropped concrete blocks, fencing at the site of a Kensington encampment. The nearby church wants them gone
The city says they’re temporary, but the church, which supported the encampment, says more blocks and fencing remain from a clearing two years ago.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
After tearing down an encampment outside a church last week, the City of Toronto dropped large concrete blocks and erected metal fencing on the site — next to blocks and fencing it had placed there two years prior. @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/the...
thestar.com
The city dropped concrete blocks, fencing at the site of a Kensington encampment. The nearby church wants them gone
The city says they’re temporary, but the church, which supported the encampment, says more blocks and fencing remain from a clearing two years ago.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
The City of Toronto, accompanied by police and security guards, cleared an encampment outside the Church of Saint Stephen-in-the-Fields near College and Augusta streets on Thursday, after a fire hazard order from the fire department. @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/cit...
thestar.com
City clears Kensington-area church encampment after Toronto Fire order
City workers offered shelter spaces and “homelessness supports” to the 12 occupants ahead of Thursday’s 1 p.m. deadline from Toronto Fire.
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Richie Assaly @rdassaly.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
A new CBC investigation reveals that Canadian charities continue to fund organizations, including the Israeli military, that support the ever-expanding settlements in the West Bank. “We are financing war criminality through our charitable system." www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
cbc.ca
Canadian charities complicit in helping fund Israeli settlement movement in West Bank, critics say | CBC News
Tax deductible donations made by Canadians to groups that financially support West Bank settlements that are illegal under international law are continuing in the face of escalating attacks on Palesti...
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
Days after the City of Toronto brought in heavy machinery to clear a homeless encampment at Dufferin Grove Park, city staff and private security on Wednesday cleared the park again after people had promptly returned. Six people were arrested @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/six...
thestar.com
Six people arrested at second Dufferin Grove encampment clearing
‘Every effort has been made’ to care for encampment residents, ensure the public’s use of the park and to avoid enforcement, says the city’s head of shelter services.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 24/09/2025
Ontario’s public servants have been ordered back to the office. So why will Landlord and Tenant Board hearings stay virtual? Legal clinics have been expressing their concerns for years. My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/news/gta/ont...
thestar.com
Ontario’s public servants have been ordered back to the office. So why will Landlord and Tenant Board hearings stay virtual?
Doug Ford told Ontario public servants to go back to work. So why isn’t the Landlord and Tenant Board?
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Key findings include that Black renters are overrepresented in eviction cases — making up 15% of the racialized population but 25% of evictions among racialized people — and that people who have been evicted report the lowest levels of physical and mental health. www.thestar.com/news/gta/nea...
thestar.com
Nearly a third of people who have been homeless were evicted at some point, CMHC says
A series of studies on evictions found Black and Indigenous renters are overrepresented in eviction cases, and people who have experienced eviction report the lowest levels of physical and mental
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Nearly a third of people who have been homeless were evicted at some point, a series of CMHC reports on eviction found www.thestar.com/news/gta/nea...
thestar.com
Nearly a third of people who have been homeless were evicted at some point, CMHC says
A series of studies on evictions found Black and Indigenous renters are overrepresented in eviction cases, and people who have experienced eviction report the lowest levels of physical and mental
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Richie Assaly @rdassaly.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Independent UN commission finds that’s Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza *since* October 7. The report was limited to Gaza, but raises the “serious concern” that Israel intends “to destroy the Palestinians as a whole.”
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The Associated Press @apnews.com · 16/09/2025
BREAKING: Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, a team of independent experts commissioned by the U.N.’s Human Rights Council concludes.
bit.ly
Human rights experts join rising chorus that accuses Israel of genocide in Gaza
A team of experts commissioned by the U.N.'s Human Rights Council has concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 12/09/2025
Are REITs good for housing? CMHC says we need more, raising concerns among some housing experts My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Are REITs good for housing? CMHC says we need more, raising concerns among some housing experts
Critics say the national housing agency has drifted from its affordability mandate, while CMHC says it wants to increase housing supply while protecting tenants.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
About 100 Thorncliffe Park households have reached an agreement with Starlight Investments, seemingly ending a lengthy public battle that saw the working-class tenants withhold rent from Canada’s largest private landlord for two years. My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Around 100 households on rent strike and facing mass eviction reach ‘amicable agreement’ with landlord
Tenants at 71, 75 and 79 Thorncliffe Park Dr. began withholding rent from landlord Starlight in May 2023.
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Toronto Star @thestar.com · 01/09/2025
The largest professional organization of scholars studying genocide said Monday that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
thestar.com
Leading genocide scholars organization says Israeli action in Gaza is genocide
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The largest professional organization of scholars studying genocide said Monday that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
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Toronto Star @thestar.com · 02/09/2025
Trump administration restrictions on Palestinian visa applicants means nearly all would be refused
thestar.com
Trump administration restrictions on Palestinian visa applicants means nearly all would be refused
Palestinian applicants who hold non-Palestinian Authority passports may also face difficulties should they need a U.S. visa.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 29/08/2025
Groups representing about 90,000 Ontario realtors are calling on the province to reform the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) after the government said Thursday it would intervene in an “extensive review” of the regulator. www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
iPro scandal: Groups representing 90,000 realtors call on province to reform RECO
RECO said it's working with the insurer to expedite deposit and commission claims, with payments beginning Friday.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 29/08/2025
Starlight investments, Canada‘s largest private landlord, often dramatically increases eviction applications after acquiring buildings, study finds My latest @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Canada’s largest private landlord often dramatically increases eviction applications after acquiring buildings, study finds
Starlight Investments filed 15 eviction applications per 100 units each year, while chain owned and managed properties filed seven applications per 100 units, a recent study found.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Researchers examined more than 232,000 eviction applications in Toronto from 2010 to 2019 across purpose-built rental apartments with 20 or more units. www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Financial firms file for eviction more than any other Toronto landlord, new research finds
The research looked at more than 200,000 evictions and found financial firms pursue evictions at a rate 1.5 times higher than chain landlords and 2.5 times more than single-building landlords.
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Manuela Vega @manuelavega.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Financial firms in Toronto pursue evictions more often than any other type of landlord in the city, a groundbreaking new study has found My latest for @thestar.com www.thestar.com/real-estate/...
thestar.com
Financial firms file for eviction more than any other Toronto landlord, new research finds
The research looked at more than 200,000 evictions and found financial firms pursue evictions at a rate 1.5 times higher than chain landlords and 2.5 times more than single-building landlords.
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