The COVID-19 outbreak has student Madison Cleary worried she won’t be able to pay her $770 a month rent for the Bloordale Village apartment she shares.

When the virus hit, Cleary, 26, a part-time student in her final year of paralegal studies at George Brown College, lost hours at her two part-time jobs — including one at a skateboard shop — that help pay her rent while in school, jobs that earned her about $340 a week.

Another roommate in the unit held a job in a café, but it closed amid COVID-19, so she is unable to work too.

The two and their third roommate affected by the fallout from the virus got together to talk about what to do about paying the rent at the end of this month.

They decided to ask their landlord, Islington Village Corp., the owner of several private buildings across the city, for a deferral. To their astonishment a representative for the company was understanding and is giving them a break for the time being.

They’ll eventually have to pay the full amounts they owe, and the representative told them in an email he hopes to see the money “sooner rather than later.”

That came as welcome news to the renters.

“I was surprised,” says Cleary, who adds she has heard horror stories from friends who have also lost work due to COVID-19 but have landlords who aren’t bending and still demand the April 1 rent.

In her correspondence with the landlord in which they ask for relief, Cleary and her roommates noted “there may be a delay (in paying rent) due to our need to prioritize having food while we secure further income.”

Interviewed by the Star Friday, the representative for the landlord, who asked that his name not be used, said he’ll assess requests from other tenants for rent relief on a “case-by-case basis.” He added Cleary and her roommates have been good renters (Cleary has lived in the unit for two years) and always pay their rent on time.

“I’m not going to throw them out,” he said. But he added that operating rental buildings is a tough business.

“Everyone has expenses and payments,” he said.

He acknowledged COVID-19 has been devastating for many people, particularly young renters and students. He expects Cleary and her roommates will give him updates on the rent they’ll owe.

The decision to ask for relief started earlier this week when the landlord sent the three roommates a letter informing them the rent was going up two per cent, in line with the province’s 2020 guidelines.

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The trio discussed whether they were comfortable going to their landlord to ask for a break on their monthly rent.

“It’s risky and a scary feeling to have to admit you are in that situation and ask for the mercy of the landlord,” Cleary explained Friday.

They also discussed some ways to come up with money for rent, including applying to the relief fund the federal government established for people who have lost work due to COVID-19. The fund is paying $2,000 a month for up to four months to those who qualify.