Ontario has increased protections for renters with an easy-to-understand standard rental agreement (lease) for new private residential leases, now in effect across the province.
For new leases signed on or after April 30, most landlords are required to use the standard lease, which provides a template to gather basic information such as names and addresses, the total rent and when it is due, and any rules or terms about the rental unit or building. This includes tenancies in single and semi-detached houses, apartment buildings, rented condominiums and secondary units, such as basement apartments.
A guide to the standard lease published in many languages to ensure that more people understand their rights and what they are agreeing to when they sign a new lease. The rental agreement guide is available in 23 languages: Arabic, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, English, Farsi, French, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hindi, Italian, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Tamil, Ukrainian, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
The standard lease reduces the use of illegal terms and potential misunderstandings caused by verbal tenancy agreements, which will make it easier for landlords to conduct their business and for tenants to understand their rights and responsibilities.
The standard lease is written in easy-to-understand language and includes information such as:
It also has a section on renter and landlord rights and responsibilities, and explains what can (and cannot) be included in a lease. For example:
The standard lease does not apply to most social and supportive housing, co-operative housing, retirement and nursing homes, mobile home parks and land lease communities, and commercial properties.
The standard lease is part of Ontario’s Fair Housing Plan, which includes 16 comprehensive measures to make housing more affordable for homebuyers and renters, while bringing stability to the real estate market and protecting the investment of homeowners. The Plan also includes an expansion of rent control protections for tenants in Ontario, meaning that as of April 20, 2017, approximately 1.3 million residential rental households are now protected from sudden, unexpected rent increases — including all private market rental units whether they are in apartment buildings, rented condominiums or homes. In 2018, those increases are capped at 1.8% and future increases cannot exceed 2.5% unless the landlord has approval from the Landlord and Tenant Board. That means the approximately 1 in 5 people in Ontario who live in a private market rental unit are protected by rent control.
Contact the Landlord and Tenant Board, Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., by mail, fax, in-person or by telephone (toll free at 1-888-332-3234), to learn more about your rights and responsibilities.
May 1, 2018, Office of the Premier
