4Rent – Ottawa and Gatineau – December 17, 2022

GROUP SALES MANAGER

Randi Segal randi.segal@mediaclassified.ca

MANAGER CUSTOMER SALES & SERVICE Marilyn Watling marilyn@mediaclassified.ca

PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER

Leo Racioppo leo@mediaclassified.ca

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER John Racioppo john@mediaclassified.ca

ACCOUNTING INQUIRIES accountingteam@mediaclassified.ca

CIRCULATION INQUIRIES distributionteam@mediaclassified.ca

EDITOR Amanda Pereira

DIRECTOR OF PRINT MEDIA

Lauren Reid-Sachs

GRAPHIC DESIGNER & ASSISTANT MANAGER Alicesa Pullan

GRAPHIC DESIGNER & PRE-PRESS COORDINATOR Hannah Yarkony

GRAPHIC DESIGNERS

Johannah Lorenzo, Yvonne Poon, Mike Terentiev

All submissions from interested parties will be considered. Please submit to the editor at editorial@mediaclassified.ca

4Rent.ca

facebook.com/4Rent.ca @4Rent

Please recycle this magazine!

Media Classified Corporation participates in the Partners in Growth Reforestation Program through St. Joseph Communications. To date, Partners in Growth has planted over 2.5 million trees in parks, recreation and conservation areas, and other public spaces across Canada. Established in 1990, this program was started with Scouts Canada to help replenish the environment.

Copyright 2022. All rights reserved. Reproduction, storage in a retrieval system or transmission, in any form or by any means, whether electronic, mechanical or otherwise, in whole or in part, without prior written permission of Media Classified Corporation is strictly prohibited.

area maps

Use our colour coded regions to find the rental area you’re interested in. All our ads are organized by regions easily located by the matching colour tabs.

EAST

4 ways to kickstart your winter financial cleanup

As the weather turns colder and summer vacations end, many take stock of their money and revisit their financial goals and priorities. Here are some tips to stay on track:

review your household budget

An oldie but a goodie, reviewing your weekly, monthly and yearly budgets will ensure that they coincide with your priorities and will help you identify possible areas where you can scale back. Look for digital tools that can give you a quick, personalized picture of

your day-to-day spending to make informed decisions about your money.

reassess savings goals

Are you making progress toward your short and long-term financial goals? What actions would help you reach them sooner? Are they still what you want? Consider using a tool like BMO’s Savings Goals to help you set up, manage and keep track of your contributions.

automate it

Don’t rely on your memory to pay your bills on time; switch to

automated billing to help you stay on track and never miss a payment. A feature like BMO QuickPay can help manage payment due dates and simplify the payment process conveniently from your mobile device or desktop.

toss out (some) paper

To help eliminate physical clutter in your home, consider receiving electronic statements for your credit cards, loans, brokerage accounts and household bills. They are eco-friendly and can help you more easily track your fi nances with all your statements in one place. ■

keeping everyone safe for the holidays

With the holiday season around the corner, you might be wondering how to plan your celebrations without creating health risks. As we have learned to live with COVID-19, it’s easier to feel comfortable and prioritize fun, but no one wants to create a super-spreader event or be the cause of someone’s illness. So, here are some steps to consider to make your time together safe and enjoyable:

set up simple precautions

Implement simple steps that will help keep any event safe. Encourage clean hands by setting up soap dispensers and paper towels by the sink or place hand sanitizer near food. Avoid communal bowls of food like chips and instead pre-portion them into plates or cups, or use utensils for self-service. Consider running a quality air filter or opening windows if the temperature allows.

communicate with guests

Let your guests know what you’ve done to make the setup safer so they can feel con fi dent about attending. Remind them to stay home if they are feeling unwell or may have been exposed. We all know to stay home if there’s risk, but the pressures of the holiday social season can make it hard to say no to events when unwell. You can make someone’s decision not to attend easier by saying it’s okay.

consider the risk and situation

The state of the pandemic changes often, whether it’s new variants or new vaccine approvals. As you’re planning your gettogether, keep in mind varying levels of risk.

It can be tempting to see COVID-19 as a cold or minor illness, but that’s not the case for everybody. Not only does the disease increase the risk for longer-term health problems, some people are not able to mount a proper immune response even if they’ve been vaccinated. They might have a health condition or be taking medication that impacts their immune system.

Fortunately, in addition to the tips above, there are additional prevention and treatment options that can help protect immune-compromised people, such as monoclonal antibodies. These work by mimicking the body’s natural antibodies to neutralize a virus.

You can learn more about the best ways to prevent or treat COVID-19 by speaking with your healthcare provider and by visiting canada.ca.■

As we have learned to live with COVID-19, it’s easier to feel comfortable and prioritize fun, but no one wants to create a super-spreader event or be the cause of someone’s illness.

how to cut down your commuting costs

Whether we’re headed to work, school or other commitments, sky-high gas prices and inflation mean many of us are facing regular trips that are more expensive than ever.

While there’s not much you can do about prices these days, there are few steps you can take to save on your commute. Here are some ideas:

plan your trips

If you know you’re heading into the office, you can plan errands around your in-office day(s) and stop at destinations like the grocery

store, bank or pet store, on your way home. Running your errands on days that you’ll already be out driving can save you time in your schedule and may even save you money at the gas pump.

try out alternative transit or carpooling

In good weather, you may try riding a bike to work to avoid filling up at the pump and enjoying the health benefits at the same time. But in the later fall and winter months when that may not be an option, try carpooling with colleagues – this can help you save on gas, and give

you some great company to enjoy the ride with.

take advantage of apps

As long as you use them hands free, mapping or GPS apps can help you find the most efficient – and therefore cheapest – route. You can also try telematics – a usage-based program that follows your driving habits over time and tailors your insurance premiums accordingly. Apps like these, such as Aviva Journey, are a simple way to reward yourself with cash saved for staying safe on the road.

Find more information at aviva. ca/journey ■

update your kitchen without a reno

When it comes to home improvement on a budget, the kitchen can feel like a non-starter. Appliances, flooring and countertops are all expensive to switch out, and the amount of work is basically a renovation. But take a second look – you have kitchen

DIY options that won’t break your back or your budget. Try walletand work-friendly updates to these areas:

cabinet colour

Replacing your cabinets is pricey and messy. But you’ll amaze yourself with how much

4Rent.ca December 17, 2022–January 14, 2023

personality a fresh coat of paint can add to your kitchen. Brighten up dark doors to create a bright, clean and airy feel. Take plain white cabinets and drawers, and paint on a layer of mahogany sophistication. Feeling bold? Paint with a bright accent colour like red or blue to really let that part

of your kitchen pop. Switch out the hardware to a new metal and you’ll end up with completely new cabinetry.

the lighting

The great thing about swapping your lighting setup is that it will enhance all your other DIY choices.

Go with a central hanging light for a classic feel, or a set of track lights to put the spotlight exactly where you want it. Many kitchens have an unused light fixture in the ceiling, so you can even add a second set of lights without having to worry about rewiring or tearing into the ceiling.

your faucet

DIY that makes an impact doesn’t have to mean everything but the kitchen sink. A new faucet is easy to install, and it can make a surprising difference to the feel of your kitchen. Look for one that matches form with function: a pull-down faucet will let you more easily keep the sink pristine, and if it uses Delta’s Touch2O, you can turn it on with a tap anywhere on the faucet and avoid messy handles during meal prep. A timeless design with a modern feel can fit into just about any kitchen.

Find more information at deltafaucet.ca. ■

DIY that makes an impact doesn’t have to mean everything but the kitchen sink

we

to worry about the flu this year?

With a deadly global pandemic at the top of everyone’s mind over the last two years, catching the flu has probably been further down your list of concerns. But this coming flu season could be a major one, according to experts.

One factor that suggests a potentially active year is the Southern Hemisphere’s recent flu season. Because they experience winter before countries north of the equator, the Southern Hemisphere’s flu season is a strong predictor for how ours will turn out. And this year, countries such as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argenti-

na experienced a significant flu season, according to the World Health Organization.

It’s more important than ever to get your flu shot this year. After all, the flu is a serious illness. On average, more than 12,000 Canadians are hospitalized and about 3,500 die each year. Those who are older, very young children and people who are immunocompromised are at even greater risk.

One thing to keep in mind is that there are different kinds of flu shots to choose from. In Canada, there are recommended vaccines based on individual factors, such as if you’re over 65 years old, pregnant, or if you have a chronic health condi-

The Southern Hemisphere’s flu

tion. Your doctor or pharmacist can help you decide which vaccine is right for you.

So, if you’re back in the office, the kids are going to school, you have travel plans coming up or are generally feeling like things are getting back to normal, it’s a sound idea to get your flu shot early.

To learn more and book your shot, talk to your doctor or local pharmacist. ■

do

need

season is a strong predictor for how ours will turn out.

do you really need renters insurance

If your apartment building or rental home doesn’t require you to have proof of renters insurance, you might hum and haw about having to pay an extra monthly fee and decide it’s not necessary. I’m all for avoiding extra monthly payments – but that renters insurance policy might really help you out should

you come across a series of unfortunate events.

Your landlord probably has property insurance on your building, but their policy doesn’t likely protect your personal belongings, any of the upgrades you’ve made to your unit, or cover you if someone hurts themselves in your home.

It will cover certain things, but disregard others – know what’s what when it comes to your landlord’s insurance versus your own.

if a fire burns down your building

Property insurance: Generally speaking, your landlord’s property

insurance would pay for the demolition of the building (if necessary), as well as cover the expenses required to repair or rebuild it. This means it would pay to fix the structure itself, as well as any permanant fixtures – lights, built-in cabinetry, etc. Their insurance would not cover your personal belongings.

VS Renters insurance: In most cases, renters insurance would cover all of the contents in your unit in the case of a fire. Most policies would also cover your expenses if you needed a place to live while your home was out of commission.

Property insurance: As you now know, the landlord’s property insurance doesn’t extend to the contents of your unit, which means that without renters insurance, you’d be on the hook for replacing everything yourself in this situation.

Property insurance: Chances are, if you organize a get-together and a partygoer slips on a spill and hurts themself in your home, your landlord’s insurance would not be of any help if that person decided to sue you.

VS Renters insurance: If you had liability coverage included in your renters insurance, it would protect you financially if you unintentionally caused bodily harm to someone in your home. It would also likely cover you if you accidentally caused damage to the property in which you lived.

VS Renters insurance: In most cases, your renters insurance policy covers your possessions and personal property if your apartment gets broken into.

Whether you’re renting a basement apartment in a home, a unit in a mid-rise or one in a massive highrise, insurance is all the same – the property owner insures the structure and property, and the resident insures the contents.

Take a look around your place – how would you feel without everything in your home? Is it all worth paying a small monthly fee to protect? ■

if someone gets hurt in your home

if someone breaks in and steals your stuff

— Jackie Marchildon is a bilingual writer and editor. She spends her time searching for hidden gems across the city, whether it’s new neighbourhoods and restaurants or upcoming trends in real estate and home decor.

Whether you’re renting a basement apartment in a home, a unit in a mid-rise or one in a massive highrise, insurance is all the same – the property owner insures the structure and property, and the resident insures the contents.

how to maintain our apartment buildings

Maintaining apartment buildings is important for tenant safety and well-being. Rentalhousing providers have an obligation to their residents to make sure that they are living in quality units that feel safe and comfortable. Maintaining an apartment building may seem straight forward and easy, support and dedication from owners, ensure that their tenants live in quality homes. However, maintaining an apartment building is a communitywide responsibility. While rentalhousing providers are seen to have the biggest responsibility when it comes to maintaining an apartment building, the tenants also have a responsibility of supporting that maintenance by cooperating with management to ensure that buildings stay in a good state and repairs are conducted in a timely manner. Our buildings are homes to all of us, and we need to work together to keep them in good condition.

According to the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), both the rentalhousing providers and the tenants have an obligation to maintain and repair the rental property. It is important to note that these obligations are true for any and all rental agreements.

rental-housing provider responsibilities

The rental-housing provider has responsibilities that include repairing and maintaining the property and meeting property standards. The provider should always keep the building in good condition. Electrical, plumbing and heating systems should be always functioning, as should appliances, windows, doors, locks, lighting, garages, laundry

Walls, roofs, ceilings, carpets and walkways should be repaired as needed as well to withstand the test of time. In the case that something stops functioning due to wear and tear, the onus is on the provider to replace it.

Additionally, the rental-housing provider needs to keep the property clean, which ranges from making sure common areas are tidy and clean to taking care of any pest issues. Property standards are outlined in municipal bylaws and provincial maintenance standards.

Rental-housing providers should also make sure that their building

The provider needs to make sure that they are always supplying

situations such as overdue rent.

tenant responsibilities

The tenant should keep their rental unit clean. As long as the state

on other tenants, the cleanliness of their unit is generally left to their own judgement.

In case of damages that are not due to normal wear and tear, but due to damage by the tenant or their guests, the tenant will be required to pay for the repair or take care of it themselves.

The maintenance of the apartment building relies on the strong relationship between the rentalhousing provider and the tenant. It is great communication between the two parties that ensures the maintenance of the building. If there is a problem, the

their rental-housing provider to help solve the issue. And rental-housing providers should do the same thing. If the tenant is not keeping up with standards, the rental-housing provider should ask the tenant to make changes

Finally, the provider should also maintain and not interfere with vital services, which include hot/ cold water, fuel, electricity, gas

For more information on how to maintain your apartment building whether you are a tenant or a rentalhousing provider, visit the Tribunals Ontario website.

— The Federation of Rental-Housing Providers of Ontario

More than four million people moved residences in Canada last year, many of whom did the packing themselves. For some, it works out fine; others have problems resulting from a lack of foresight, poorly packed boxes and inexperience in loading moving trucks.

Here are a few tips to help you avoid finding damaged items at your destination:

purchase boxes from your mover

The most common packing mistake we see are people getting free boxes at the grocery or liquor store and then putting too much weight in them. For example, using a large box to pack books and magazines may make it too heavy to lift, and the box might break during the move due to the weight.

Use this rule of thumb: the heavier the item, the smaller the box. Be choosy about your boxes; free boxes from a grocery store that have been used to ship produce could contain insect larvae that may transfer to your belongings.

be realistic about how many boxes you need

Depending on how long you have lived in your current location, you will most likely underestimate

packing mistakes avoid common

BY CHUCK RESNICK

your boxes requirement. Often, we hear of renters who think 40 or 50 boxes will be enough, and then realize they need upwards of 80 boxes, two days before moving day.

wall early on and, this decreases the capacity of the items that can be moved at one time. It also eats up precious time, and therefore, money.

think ahead

pack

early and finish before the movers arrive

Sometimes we arrive at a customer’s home and they’re not packed. There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to move customers’ belongings while they are attempting to shove items into boxes and we get in each others’ way.

This also interferes with the optimal loading of the moving truck. We have a loading system where the first things we place in the truck are light items such as chairs, lampshades, cushions, etc; we place these items in the ‘attic’ (the area over the cab) of the truck. We can get lots of light items up there and they stay secure.

Next, we create a ‘box wall’ stacked to the ceiling to hold the items in the attic in place. We then stand plastic wrapped mattresses against the box wall and secure everything with tie-off straps to keep belongings from getting jostled during the move. If you’re not completely packed and ready on moving day, we can’t create that box

Begin packing items you don’t use daily. As you pack your boxes move them to the main floor and stack them along a wall near the front door. Moving an apartment, say it takes 2.5 minutes, on average, to move a box from a bedroom to the truck. Having it on the main floor can shave 10 to 20 seconds off the time for each box. Saving 20 seconds per box can save lots of time and money.

have your moving company pack for you

We are skilled, have more experience and have standard-size small, medium and large boxes that are designed to fit into our trucks to create a perfect box wall for optimum efficiency and safety.

So, when it comes to moving, forethought goes a long way. Because your belongings mean a lot to you, take extra care when packing so that they arrive at your destination safely.

Visit www.twomen.ca for a location near you. ■

Chuck Resnick is vice-president marketing and operations at Two Men and A Truck – Canada®

Chuck Resnick