One of Toronto’s biggest landlords has pledged to abandon the debts he claimed two evicted tenants owed and to send settlement letters to credit bureaus to repair their credit ratings.

The action follows a letter he received from Ontario’s housing minister saying that under currrent rules he is not entitled to demand two months’ rent after evicting a tenant.

Brent Merrill, president of MetCap Living Management and Suite Collections, told the Star he will stop pursuing Wesley Harkness and Cyrilla Hamilton for two months’ rent after their evictions. If they pay back rent up to the day they moved out and cover the sheriff’s fee, their debts will be considered settled, Merrill said.

“I’ll present that to the two people and see what they have to say,” he said.

MetCap’s policy of evicting a tenant and then billing them for improper notice existed in a legal grey area for years, justified by a court ruling from 20 years ago but rejected by a lower court judgment last year.

After the Star revealed the practice in an investigation published last weekend, provincial housing minister Ted McMeekin said he didn’t believe it was legal and vowed to eliminate any uncertainty in the law.

In the letter sent to Merrill on Tuesday, the minister wrote: “There is no provision under the Residential Tenancies Act that entitles a landlord to collect an additional 60 days’ rent after an eviction.

“I expect that MetCap will discontinue this practice immediately and permanently.”

Harkness and Hamilton have seen their credit ratings further damaged because MetCap claimed they owed two months’ rent. For years, this has prevented them from getting credit cards or qualifying for loans and overdraft protection.

Because Harkness, who was evicted from a MetCap building in 2010, paid the amount owing on his eviction order plus a $324 sheriff’s fee several months after moving out, Merrill said if he agreed to sign a settlement letter, he would be free and clear.

“That amount is sufficient to settle the file,” Merrill said, adding that the settlement letter would be forwarded to the credit bureaus.

“It’s not going to totally wipe it off his credit rating, but it will show (it’s) settled,” he said. “That should not affect him any more going into the future.”

When informed of the offer, Harkness said he was happy, but skeptical. “That’s awesome,” he said, “if it’s true.”

He has had to bear the consequences of the $800 debt imposed on him by MetCap for more than five years.

“I want to make sure that it’s going to be off my (credit rating),” he said, “because I still don’t trust them. But if they’re being straight up about that, it’s good news.”

Because Hamilton hasn’t paid the rent she owed up to the day she moved out in 2012, nor the sheriff’s fee, she will have to pay about $500 to clear the $1,420 debt she’s been carrying since her eviction.

“It will be the same thing with her,” said Merrill. “If she pays us that money, we would be willing to write a settlement agreement with her saying, ‘We’re all settled. We’re done and we’ll record that on your (credit) rating.’

“But we have to sign an agreement to say that no one’s going after anyone for any more money.”

Hamilton was happy to hear about the offer, but weary after so many years.

“It’s been a long road,” she said. “They’ve acknowledged they were wrong. At least we can move along now.”

If Hamilton can settle with MetCap, it will also remove the debt from the credit score of her niece, Beverly, who co-signed her lease.

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The debt has put additional financial pressure on Beverly, who has credit troubles of her own. With two mortgages and a home-equity loan, she says she hasn’t been able to get a car loan to replace her aging Chrysler van, already on its last legs.

“When something like this happens, the major institutions won’t even talk to you. They just look at your credit rating and walk away,” Beverly said.

“But this (outcome) is a milestone. It gives people assurance there’s a fair system in place.”