By Canadian Press

Repeat rent-dodger damages lives of N.S. landlords, brings call for system reforms

Oct 16, 2019 | 12:24 PM

HALIFAX — A Halifax coffee shop owner says he’s faced homelessness and despair as he tried for over four months to evict someone he called a “professional squatter.”

Jason Selby says he retook possession late Tuesday of the home Nadav Even-Har and his family occupied, finding it damaged and with urine stains on the fireplace.

Court records and interviews indicate Even-Har has on prior occasions followed the same pattern of not paying rent, appealing court orders to depart and delaying evictions for months.

A Toronto-based lawyer who represents both landlords and tenants says the practice of tenants abusing provincial systems by prolonging eviction notices hurts trust in the system.

Caryma Sa’d, who represents both tenants and landlords, notes there have been Ontario Divisional Court cases that refer to serial abuse by tenants who game the system to avoid rent and eviction.

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Even-Har didn’t respond to an email from The Canadian Press, but he has told the CBC he regrets his actions and hopes to eventually repay former landlords who evicted him.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 16, 2019.

The Canadian Press