Section 12

Deferral or Forgiveness of Geared-to-Income Rent

1. A housing provider may defer or forgive all or part of the rent payable by the household with the prior written consent of the service manager.
   

   Rules Guiding Decision and Deferral or Forgiveness

2. A housing provider's decision regarding any deferral or forgiveness of rent shall be made in accordance with the rules made by the service manager.
   

   Rent Deferral In Dual Rent Circumstances

3. "Dual rent circumstance" means a circumstance where a household has been offered a rent-geared-to-income unit and if the household accepts the offer, the household will be required to pay rent at their current accommodation and for the rent-geared-to-income unit being offered for the same time period.
   
   
4. Subject to Section 12 — Deferral or Forgiveness of Geared-to-Income Rent, paragraphs I, 2 and 5, a housing provider may offer a household a rent-geared-to-income unit, hold the unit vacant and defer rent payable to enable the household to give proper notice to vacate to their existing landlord and avoid a dual rent circumstance under the following conditions;
   
   
   1. the household verifies to the satisfaction of the housing provider that the household will be in a dual rent circumstance, and;
   2. the household does not occupy the rent-geared-to-income unit during the period the unit is being held vacant and rent is deferred, and;
   3. the housing provider shall not hold the unit vacant and defer rent for more than a two full calendar month period after the offer has been made to the household.
      

      Rent Forgiveness

5. A housing provider may forgive an amount of rent payable by a household, with the prior written consent of the service manager, under the following conditions:
   1. where, in the opinion of the housing provider, a household did not provide sufficient verification of total household income to enable the housing provider to appropriately determine the household's geared-to-income rent payable and as a result:
      1. the household's rent payable was increased to the market rent amount, and;
      2. the household, in the opinion of the housing provider, subsequently provided sufficient verification of total household income and;
      3. the housing provider determines it is appropriate to retroactively adjust the rent payable to reconcile the household's rental account and re-instate a rent-geared-to-income amount on a retroactive basis.
   2. where, in the opinion of the housing provider, a retroactive adjustment to the rent payable by a household is deemed necessary by the housing provider for reasons other than provided for in Section 12 — Deferral or Forgiveness of Geared-to-Income Rent, paragraph 5 subsection (a) above.
      
      
6. The amount of rent payable to be forgiven shall not exceed the amount required to implement retroactive adjustments referred to in this Section.