Know Your Rights as an Ontario Student Tenant

While school has prepared us for many things as university students, unfortunately, being a first-time renter is not one of them. This is especially true at Queen’s, where most students sign leases for the following year’s housing almost a full year in advance, often before they have had a chance to learn their rights. This piece breaks down some of the issues students run into most: the tenant’s and landlord’s obligations in a standard lease, privacy protections, and a tenant’s rights concerning rent increases and subletting. Knowing the answers before you sign, not before something goes wrong, will further allow students to advocate effectively for themselves in a new living situation. 

Each answer will be grounded in Ontario’s Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA or Act), the provincial statute that governs landlord-tenant rights, including for student renters. It is worth noting that the RTA only applies to tenants who do not share a bathroom or kitchen with their landlord; those that do fall outside of its protections. With that threshold in mind, here are the questions that every student renter should know the answers to before signing a lease.

1. What should I look for when reading and signing a new lease for the first time? 

Before even agreeing to sign a new lease, ask about the building’s maintenance history, such as past or present mold, heat, and pest issues, who to contact for repairs, and how quickly issues are typically addressed. When signing the lease, check that it includes the correct legal names of all tenants and the landlord, the length of the tenancy, the exact rent amount and due date, and what is included in the rent, such as utilities and/or parking. Also, pay attention to any additional terms in the lease; although landlords can add extra clauses, they cannot supersede the rights provided by the RTA. Any clauses that are inconsistent with the provisions of the Act are not enforceable, even after signature (RTA, s. 4). 

2. What are my responsibilities as a tenant in a standard lease? What are the landlord’s?

Under Part IV of the Act, tenants are required to maintain ordinary cleanliness in their unit (RTA, s. 33) and repair any undue damage to the unit, whether willfully or negligently caused by the tenant or their guests (RTA, s. 34). Tenants also cannot change the locks without the landlord’s consent (RTA, s. 35) and are prohibited from harassing, obstructing, coercing, threatening, or interfering with the landlord (RTA, s. 36). 

Landlords also have a defined set of obligations under Part III of the Act. They are responsible for maintaining the rental unit and complying with health, safety, and housing standards, even if the tenant knew about the problem when they signed the lease (RTA, s. 20). Landlords must also maintain any vital services, care services, or food they are responsible for providing, and cannot withhold or deliberately interfere with them, such as shutting off heat or water to pressure a tenant to leave (RTA, s. 21(1)). Furthermore, landlords are prohibited from interfering with a tenant’s reasonable enjoyment of the unit (RTA, s. 22), or harassing, coercing, or intimidating a tenant (RTA, s. 23). Importantly, they cannot change the locks without providing the tenant(s) with new keys (RTA, s. 24). 

3. Is my landlord allowed to raise my rent mid-lease or when re-signing a lease, and if so by how much?

For most rental properties, landlords can only raise rent once every 12 months, and only up to the province’s annual guideline (RTA, s. 116-120), which is 2.1% for 2026 and 1.9% for 2027 (Government of Ontario, 2026). Landlords must also give at least 90 days written notice before an increase takes effect (RTA, s. 116). For example, if your monthly rent is $1,000 when you first sign a lease on June 1, 2026, then your landlord could lawfully increase your rent 12 months later, in June 2027. Since the provincial guideline is 1.9% for 2027, the maximum allowable increase in this case would be $19 more, making rent $1,019/month (Government of Ontario, 2026). 

If a landlord wants to raise the rent above the provincial guideline, they must apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) for an above guideline increase. To succeed in this application, a landlord must show that there has been an extraordinary increase in municipal taxes, a need for major capital repairs or renovations, or hired security services (RTA, s. 126(1)). Tenants who believe they have been charged an improper increase can dispute it by making an application to the LTB within 12 months of the amount first being charged (Government of Ontario, 2026).

4. Can my landlord enter the property without notice, and how much notice are they required to give?

In most cases, landlords are required to give 24 hours’ written notice before entering a unit, specifying a reasonable time and reason for entry (RTA, s. 27). One significant exception includes showing the property to prospective tenants. In this case, while the landlord does not need to provide written notice at all, three conditions must be met: (1) the tenancy must already be understood to be ending, either through mutual agreement or because notice of termination has been given by either party; (2) entry must occur between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.; and (3) the landlord must inform the tenant, or make a reasonable effort to do so before entering (RTA, s. 26(3)). The landlord may also enter the property without written notice if there is a genuine emergency or with the tenant’s consent at the time (RTA, s. 26). 

If a rental property is being sold, a landlord may enter the property with the standard 24 hours’ written notice to show the unit to an insurer, lender or potential purchaser (RTA, s. 27 (1)(2)). Since the Act does not specifically cover what kind and how many showings may occur, this is typically worked out between the landlord and the tenant on the basis of maintaining the tenant’s right to “reasonable enjoyment” (RTA, s. 22), as explained above.

5. What am I entitled to if my unit requires maintenance or repairs?

As mentioned above, one of the landlord’s most important obligations includes maintaining the rental unit in a good state of repair and in compliance with health and safety standards (RTA, s. 20). Therefore, issues such as mold, pests, or a broken heater would fall under the landlord’s duties. If a landlord fails to make reasonable repairs after being notified of an issue, tenants may file a maintenance complaint with the LTB. The LTB could then order a landlord to provide repairs, a rent abatement, or compensation (RTA, s. 29-31).

6. What is the protocol for subletting your unit?

A tenant who wants to sublet must obtain the landlord’s consent, which cannot be reasonably withheld (RTA, s. 97). Importantly, however, the tenant is responsible for the subtenant’s actions, and must still meet their obligations under the lease agreement (RTA, s. 97(4)). Landlords are not permitted to charge a fee simply to consider or approve a sublet or assignment request (RTA, s. 97(3)). 

Taken together, these answers show that much of the stress of being a first-time renter comes down to knowing where to look. Fortunately, the Residential Tenancies Act can serve as a handy roadmap; from what to look for when signing a lease, to how much rent can legally increase, to when your landlord can and cannot walk through your door, the RTA covers most situations. Hopefully this article acts as a useful guide to the Act, and will therefore allow you to rent with greater confidence. 

Works Cited

Government of Ontario. (2026). Residential Rent Increases. Ontario.ca. https://www.ontario.ca/page/residential-rent-increases

Residential Tenancies Act, S.O. 2006, c. 17. https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/06r17#BK17