Renting in Ontario (part 1)

Right on the other side of the western border of Quebec, in Ontario, regulations on renting are quite different.

Indeed, the conditions of renting are distinct on certain points but on others, like the cancellation of the lease by the owner, they have the same rules. Which are then the main rules in Ontario?

First of all, it is the Residential Tenancies Act of 2006 which has precedence over the leases.

The Rent Deposit

Contrary to Quebec law and the multiple requests at the Government on this subject, owners in Ontario can protect their loss of income in the event of non-payment of rent thanks to a maximum deposit equivalent to more than one month of rent.

But it cannot be a question of a guarantee deposit since such a way of proceeding is prohibited in Ontario. The deposit of the rent of the last month can be required, but it can never be used to repair damage.

The owner perceives the rent of the last month at the beginning of the renting process and gives to the tenant an interest based on the rate of the consumer price index for Ontario (rate of inflation over a 12 month period going from June to May) at the beginning of the following year and this, each year. This deposit can be allocated only in the last month of rent.

When entering the dwelling, it is recommended to draw up a report of the premises and also when leaving, for the tenant, but this is not obligatory.

Post-dated cheques

A tenant can refuse to provide post-dated cheques. The owner can ask for post-dated cheques, but he cannot refuse to rent to a tenant who refuses to provide these. And the owner must give a receipt to the tenant.

And renewal?

The owner and the tenant can agree to prolong or renew the period of renting according to the same method or a new method. If the two parties cannot agree concerning the expiry of the lease, it is automatically renewed in renting per month.

End of the lease: notice and delays

It is up to the owner and to the tenant to renegotiate or cancel the lease before its expiry. The tenant can give a notice of cancellation to the owner during a lease with a determined duration, provided that the date of cancellation does not occur earlier than the last day of the period of renting.

The owner can cancel the period of renting only for the reasons stated in the law; he can thus not put an end to it simply because it has expired. When the renting at given duration becomes a renting per month, the owner cannot force the tenant to sign another lease or to agree with a new given duration. At renewal, all the conditions other than the duration of the lease remain unchanged, unless one would have agreed on something else.

With the renewal of the lease, unless something different was agreed upon, all the conditions other than the duration of the lease remain unchanged, except for the increase in rent which is not renewed automatically. The owner can increase the rent while giving a written notice of 90 days.

The owner must deliver a written notice to the tenant and the deadlines depend on the reasons for cancellation.

Transfer and subletting

The owner must react in writing to a request of the tenant for subletting. The original tenant can dispute the rejection of his request for subletting by making a request at the Commission de la location immobilière / the Landlord and Tenant Board on the form prescribed. If the original tenant wishes to reinstate the premises at the end of the subletting and he wishes to renew the lease, he can be imposed an increase in rent if 12 months have passed since the last increase in rent charged to the tenant - or since the tenant returned - and a 90 day written notice must be transmitted to him.