Hello, I have been living in a rental in Vancouver for about 2 years with my brother. My brother is moving out due to some personal reasons and I asked the landlord about replacing my brother with a friend of mine and she said it’s good. She said she would increase rent after it’s been 1 year since the previous increase and it was all good.

Now one day before my friend is about to move in, she suddenly is demanding 20% rent increase and also forcing us to pay for electricity which was previously included in a rental. We rent a laneway unit and they control the garage part and washer/dryer as well. They charge their electric cars there. The washer dryer part of the laneway is also shared with other tenants that live in their basement.

What can I do?