January 19th, 2018

Collection of questions asked by Ontario’s small-scale landlords as well as the actual answers provided by Landlord’s Self-Help Centre.


My tenant has signed a Form N11 Agreement to Terminate. If I renovate the rental unit am I required to provide the tenant with the right of first refusal?When a tenant vacates a rental unit based on having signed an Agreement to Terminate, they do not have the right of first refusal.


I have accepted a Purchase Offer from a buyer, and have given my tenants a 60 days’ notice. They have the option to stay with the new landlord but they would rather move out. Have I done my due diligence or am I missing anything?When a rental property is sold and there is a lease in place, the landlord cannot give notice to terminate the tenancy. The new owner would have to honour the existing lease. However, if your tenants are willing to move out earlier, ask them to sign a Form N11 which is a mutual agreement between the landlord and the tenant to terminate the tenancy. This form can be obtained from the Landlord and Tenant Board’s website at http://www.sjto.gov.on.ca/ltb/forms/


We rent three rooms and the tenants share the kitchen and bathroom- who is responsible for cleaning the shared areas? No one cleans, can I require a cleaning service be used?The tenants are equally responsible for the ordinary cleanliness of the unit. A mutually-agreed upon cleaning schedule may be helpful to divide the workload between the three of them. You may hire a cleaning service, but it should be specified in the tenancy agreement (especially if the cleaner’s are going to be entering the rental unit at a designated time every month).
If a tenant is not fulfilling his or her cleanliness obligations under the Act, you may send a reminder letter letting your tenant know that they must keep the unit clean, a copy of section 33 of the Residential Tenancies Act can also be attached (which indicates the tenant is responsible for ordinary cleanliness of the rental unit). If the tenant still fails to comply then a N5 notice may be served.


My tenant wants a wheelchair ramp to be installed at her unit. She is presently in a rehab facility and comes home on the weekends. In addition, I put the house up for sale because it has become a financial burden. Do I have to build the ramp?As you can see from the information you have read in the Human Rights Guide, landlords do have a duty to accommodate tenants with special needs unless to do so would cause undue hardship. The Human Rights Code takes precedence over other legislation. Therefore, even if the City is telling you that you’re not required to build the ramp you will still have to follow the Code requirements.


I had a tenant in arrears and I filed with the Landlord and Tenant Board. The tenant has left the unit, belongings are in the shed. Can I keep those or throw them out?If this means you received an order of termination after a hearing at the Landlord and Tenant Board, and the tenant moved out as a result, then pursuant to S. 41 (1) of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 you may keep, sell or dispose of any remaining belongings left behind by the tenant – either in the unit or anywhere on the residential complex such as the shed.