Kitchener Mayor Carl Zehr gives a thumbs-up to the Certified Rental Building Program now in place at Morguard Residential’s apartments in Kitchener, ON. Joining the Mayor (l-r) are Morguard’s CFO Paul Miatello, FRPO Board Chair Allen Weinbaum and Waterloo Regional Apartment Management Association President Glenn Trachsel.
KITCHENER, September 17, 2010 – The Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario (FRPO) has launched its Certified Rental Building Program (CRBP) in Kitchener at Morguard Residential’s 315 Margaret Avenue.
This residential rental housing initiative is the first quality assurance program of its kind in North America, designed specifically for tenants (consumers). Since the Program’s inaugural launch, FRPO’s members have enrolled over 100,000 suites, in 1,400+ buildings across Ontario. At the end of August, over 700 multi-residential apartment buildings received official “certification status” across Ontario.
City of Kitchener Mayor Carl Zehr, said, “Congratulations to the Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario on the launch of the Certified Rental Building Program in our community. Both renters and landlords throughout Kitchener will be able to count on superior operating standards, setting a precedent for the entire rental housing industry.”
Morguard Residential’s Vice President Paul Miatello, Vice President, said, “We are very pleased to be associated with the CRB program, and to offer this quality assurance advantage to our Kitchener tenants, and all our tenants living at our buildings located throughout Ontario. I am particularly proud of our staff efforts to achieve certification status for their buildings and residents.”
Said FRPO President & CEO Vince Brescia, “FRPO’s goals with this Program are to promote continued professionalism in our industry, and provide tenants with a quality assurance alternative when selecting their rental home. This program has been very well-received by Ontario tenants because it helps make the finding of a good quality rental home apartment much easier.”
FRPO’S Director of Certification Ted Whitehead said, “This Accreditation Program provides its members with a consistent set of standards that represent good value in rental housing for Ontario consumers. The Program’s seal of approval communicates to consumers a symbol of quality-assurance that helps tenants easily recognize well-run, well-managed buildings.”
Added Whitehead, “A key benefit of the Program for Ontario tenants is that it provides them with added peace of mind when they choose a CRB-approved building. It confirms that they have selected a rental home where the property manager cares about the quality of the rental building product and the quality of service they provide to tenants. Ontario tenants are responding very favorably to the Program, as the number of monthly inquiries on our website continues to grow at a very good pace.” Ontario consumers visit the program’s website – www.crbprogram.org to the tune of over 2,000 inquiries a month.
FRPO’s goal is to have 95,000 suites and 850 multi-residential apartment buildings certified in the Program by the end of 2010.
The Program features a ‘best practices’ approach to the provincial rental marketplace, to make it easier for tenants to recognize ‘good’ buildings and ‘good’ property managers. For the first time in the rental housing marketplace, renters will have a quality assurance alternative when selecting their apartment home.
The Program’s objectives are:
• To approve and classify multi-residential apartment buildings, across the Ontario marketplace, that meet a defined set of industry quality assurance standards for rental housing consumers
• To make it easy for tenants, and potential rental housing consumers, to recognize well-run, well-managed multi residential apartment buildings
• To provide rental housing consumers with a quality assurance alternative when selecting their apartment home
For a multi-residential apartment building to qualify as a Certified Rental Building it must meet the five mandatory requirements of the Program:
• abide by FRPO’s & the Program’s Member Code of Conduct
• adhere to the Program’s Mandatory Standards of Practice
• successfully comply with the mandatory Third-Party Audit Process
• have identified staff successfully complete the Program’s Training & Education component
• agree to market and identify their building as Certified Rental Building to prospective tenants
Consumers and tenants looking for Certified Rental Buildings across Ontario can learn more by visiting www.crbprogram.org