Chexy, while pretending to care for tenants, is funded by their oppression.

"How much do you pay for rent in Toronto?"

This question has taken over many algorithms for TikTok users in Toronto. Asked by an account called "GetChexy," It always goes like this: A man asks a student what they pay for rent in Toronto, they say a 4 figure number, he expresses shock, and they both exchange brief remarks on how terrible the rental situation has become. If you go to the profile posting these videos you also see the same man going over 'insane' listings for rentals in Toronto, expressing shock at how much they cost and how little tenants get these days. If you're lucky, you'll see him talking about a tenant horror story.

So who is the "GetChexy" account?

GetChexy is the corporate account of Chexy, a Toronto Startup with one goal. Allow tenants, who make up more than half of Toronto residents, to pay rent with a credit card. This works through a complex roundabout system of payments where the tenants pay Chexy, not the landlord, and then Chexy themselves pay the landlord.

The GetChexy videos are, however, to put it mildly, an insult from a wolf in sheep's clothing. My investigation shows not a humble TikTok account showing how ridiculous the Toronto rental market is, but rather a cooperation that directly profits from raising rents and is funded by the very oppression of tenants they pretend to be shocked by.

1: REIT Funding

Pretending to be shocked by rental prices is high and mighty when it turns out multiple REITs fund Chexy. REITs are "companies that own or finance income-producing real estate across a range of property sectors. Most REITs trade on major stock exchanges, and they offer a number of benefits to investors." (Nareit.com)

Basically, what if instead of buying a stock that is a percent of a company, you buy a stock that is a percent of a landlord? REITs own entire buildings or neighborhoods and view them not as places where people live but as portfolios to make money. REITs are infamous for stopping at nothing, including the law, evictions, and harassment of tenants, to raise the rent prices to increase their revenue, thus increasing the return on investment for shareholders.

Ricardo Tranjin, from the Policy Alternative Center and author of "The Tenant Class," calls REITs one of the, if not the parties most responsible for, our housing crisis.

Upon research into Chexy, I found that Chexy has three prominent investors. Crossbeam Ventures, Groundbreak Ventures, Ferst Capital Partners. The issue is that two out of their three significant investors are REITs.

So already, Chexy's claims of tenant sympathy are invalidated by their funding by groups whose existence and profit rely on worsening the housing crisis.

2: Commision

With the understanding that Chexy is funded by groups making life hell for the very group they pretend to care for, it's also worth noting how Chexy makes their money.

Chexy makes a percent commission on every rental payment on their system. So When Chexy tells us they wish the $2,000-a-month studio apartment they showed were cheaper, they're lying. The more you pay for the rent, the more Chexy makes. Between that and their investors, there is no incentive for Chexy to advocate for tenants, and in fact, the opposite. A company that directly profits from tenants paying more, financed by companies that can and do make tenants pay more, is not a very tenant-sympathetic mix.

3: Privacy

This third point is a little more unrelated but concerns their privacy policy. To quote it directly, Chexy can "share the data you provide to us in the form of a user profile which represents you to prospective realtors and landlords with third parties, such as condos.ca, landlords, and realtor" (Chexy). I also found that their privacy policy allows third parties, like landlords, banks, and credit card companies, to access your sensitive information. This includes IP, location, names, income, banking information, and so on.

Calling out a privacy policy may seem like a moot point, but between TikTok and public Wi-Fi, we all have collectively agreed our information being sold is fine, but the direct ability for your landlord and prospective landlords to access your personal information is worth extra attention.

4: Conclusion

What does all this mean? Besides hypocrisy and shady practices on social media, Chexy is trying to lure Tenants into a false system of trust. The more tenants they lure in, the more total control and profit they and their investors have in the finances and privacy of tenants. Chexy is on the landlord's side and like landlords, developers, and other players in development and real estate Chexy values profit over a basic human right.

Next time you see GetChexy ask, "How much do you pay in Toronto for rent" You know it's closer to a shark smelling blood before they go in for a kill than whatever sympathetic company they try to pass themselves off as.

-J.A. Caza