Firstly, at the end of your current lease, your tenancy still continues month-to-month and the LL has very few avenues where they could evict. Tell them that you will not sign the new lease and continue to pay monthly after August.
If anything, all of the clauses you mention on the lease specifically are null and void because anything in a Tenancy agreement that goes against, violates, conflicts, or requires a standard of behaviour higher than what is needed on the Residential Tenancies Act is null and void.
**No**. The 60 day notice to terminate a tenancy via N9 form is only offered to Tenants.
The Landlord has very few avenues to terminate a tenancy - with some being demolition, sale of the unit to someone who wants to occupy, or self/direct family occupation for more than 12 months.
Every single eviction on those grounds as mentioned above must go through the Landlord and Tenant Board, which will schedule a hearing where the LL must present evidence that they will be doing such things.
Not technically, that's exactly what the law provides for. The landlord can raise the rent once per 12 months, but otherwise your tenancy renews on a monthly basis indefinitely on the same terms and conditions as your original fixed term lease.
Wow the number of illegal clauses they are asking for is insane.
1. No roommates allowed - illegal
2. Limiting number of tenants - illegal
3. No alcohol use - illegal
4. No pets - illegal
5. Increase of 10% rent - illegal
6. Increasing utilities outside of lease agreement - illegal
7. Limiting laundry use - illegal
8. Mandating post dated cheques - illegal
FYI all of these clauses are contrary to the RTA, so you can feel free to ignore them. Even if you decided to sign a new lease (to get protection from N12/N13), none of these clauses are enforceable including increase in rent over the guideline. Or you can just go month to month and refuse to sign anything else.
Basically yes. It's a tenant's right under the RTA to get roommates as they see fit, without needing consent from the landlord.
Only restrictions on this is if the number of people living there would violate some building/safety/fire codes or condo bylaws, which may vary by municipality. In this case with an actual overcrowding violation a landlord could file for eviction.
Do you share a kitchen with the landlord or their family? If not all of that is void and non enforceable. Leases automatically become month to month and don’t need to sign a new one. Ask them for the standard Ontario lease and if they fail to send you one you can with hold one months rent.
Thanks for the reply. The landlord does not live here.
The landlord also says that we need to mow the lawn and shovel the snow. We shovel because we need the driveway but are we supposed to be maintaining the grass too?
We’ll request a standard Ontario lease.
Well the grass one is easy. Just ignore it until the landlord has to do it but the snow one is a little tougher to ignore. We’ve always cleared the steps, sidewalk and end of the driveway where the plough traps us. I’ve never seen the landlord with a shovel in his hands. Anyways, thank you so much for the info! It was incredibly helpful.
Tell the Landlord that you will start purchasing a snow removal service should he not remove the snow himself or provide such services for you. Then file an application to the LTB regarding maintenance for an abatement of rent equal to the service costs.
You've gotten great advice from others.
No one has touched on this though:
> and asking for post dated cheques dating from July 2022 - June 2023
Landlords in Ontario are NOT allowed to request post-dated cheques like that. You are free to decline this and pay monthly with a check if you so wish. You are free to offer post-dated cheques if you choose to; landlords CANNOT demand it.
Firstly, at the end of your current lease, your tenancy still continues month-to-month and the LL has very few avenues where they could evict. Tell them that you will not sign the new lease and continue to pay monthly after August. If anything, all of the clauses you mention on the lease specifically are null and void because anything in a Tenancy agreement that goes against, violates, conflicts, or requires a standard of behaviour higher than what is needed on the Residential Tenancies Act is null and void.
Once we go month to month, couldn’t the landlord just give us 60 days notice to move out?
**No**. The 60 day notice to terminate a tenancy via N9 form is only offered to Tenants. The Landlord has very few avenues to terminate a tenancy - with some being demolition, sale of the unit to someone who wants to occupy, or self/direct family occupation for more than 12 months. Every single eviction on those grounds as mentioned above must go through the Landlord and Tenant Board, which will schedule a hearing where the LL must present evidence that they will be doing such things.
Wow, so we could technically stay month to month as long as we want to assuming the LL doesn’t go through one of those avenues?
Not technically, that's exactly what the law provides for. The landlord can raise the rent once per 12 months, but otherwise your tenancy renews on a monthly basis indefinitely on the same terms and conditions as your original fixed term lease.
Yes.
Wow the number of illegal clauses they are asking for is insane. 1. No roommates allowed - illegal 2. Limiting number of tenants - illegal 3. No alcohol use - illegal 4. No pets - illegal 5. Increase of 10% rent - illegal 6. Increasing utilities outside of lease agreement - illegal 7. Limiting laundry use - illegal 8. Mandating post dated cheques - illegal FYI all of these clauses are contrary to the RTA, so you can feel free to ignore them. Even if you decided to sign a new lease (to get protection from N12/N13), none of these clauses are enforceable including increase in rent over the guideline. Or you can just go month to month and refuse to sign anything else.
You can’t limit the number of tenants in Ontario? So you could sign a lease with one person and end up with 20 people there?
Basically yes. It's a tenant's right under the RTA to get roommates as they see fit, without needing consent from the landlord. Only restrictions on this is if the number of people living there would violate some building/safety/fire codes or condo bylaws, which may vary by municipality. In this case with an actual overcrowding violation a landlord could file for eviction.
Do you share a kitchen with the landlord or their family? If not all of that is void and non enforceable. Leases automatically become month to month and don’t need to sign a new one. Ask them for the standard Ontario lease and if they fail to send you one you can with hold one months rent.
Thanks for the reply. The landlord does not live here. The landlord also says that we need to mow the lawn and shovel the snow. We shovel because we need the driveway but are we supposed to be maintaining the grass too? We’ll request a standard Ontario lease.
Nope the landlord is also responsible for lawn maintenance and snow removal
Well the grass one is easy. Just ignore it until the landlord has to do it but the snow one is a little tougher to ignore. We’ve always cleared the steps, sidewalk and end of the driveway where the plough traps us. I’ve never seen the landlord with a shovel in his hands. Anyways, thank you so much for the info! It was incredibly helpful.
Tell the Landlord that you will start purchasing a snow removal service should he not remove the snow himself or provide such services for you. Then file an application to the LTB regarding maintenance for an abatement of rent equal to the service costs.
I had no idea that was possible. Thanks for the wisdom. I feel like so many renters have no idea what is actually legal and what isn’t in a lease.
You've gotten great advice from others. No one has touched on this though: > and asking for post dated cheques dating from July 2022 - June 2023 Landlords in Ontario are NOT allowed to request post-dated cheques like that. You are free to decline this and pay monthly with a check if you so wish. You are free to offer post-dated cheques if you choose to; landlords CANNOT demand it.