Residential landlords looking for a template lease in Ontario
Fairly often I get an inquiry from a "new" landlord who is in the process of renting out their rental unit for the first time. In getting ready to rent out the unit they are looking for a blank lease for their tenant(s) to sign. For many years, this request for a blank lease brought on much consternation. While a great deal of the rental relationship between landlord and tenant is governed by the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), and further the Residential Tenancies Act makes any lease clause that is inconsistent with the RTA void (see section 4 RTA), a lease may still contain some unique clauses that are specific to the circumstances.
The "unique" requirements often led to a mish-mash of conditions and a merging of a variety of leases. Still today you can find leases dealing with water-closets, coal chutes and stabling of horses. The biggest problem in these leases is the inconsistency that arises through the lease. Clauses are contradictory and the result is confusion and lack of clarity. When this occurs, the law provides that any ambiguity is read or interpreted in favour of the party (usually the tenant) who did NOT draft the lease. Hence, if you have a messy lease you will not be able to rely on vague terms to insist that the lease means one thing when it could reasonably bear the interpretation of meaning many other things.
The issue with confusing leases and bookstore leases (i.e. off the spinny self-help shelf) has been addressed by the government. There is now a "standard form lease" that is required to be used in the vast majority of residential rental situations. That lease can be found at this LINK which is the website for the Ontario Central Forms Repository.
This standard form lease became available and is required to be used in most private residential tenancy agreements entered on or after April 30, 2018. The failure to use this form has potential negative consequences for landlords. As you work your way through the form you will find spaces to include special clauses and specific rules for the rental unit. Including unique clauses in this standard form does not make an otherwise illegal clause valid. Anything "unique" that you want to include still needs to be consistent with the RTA.
For the "new" landlord who is looking for a reasonable lease that is consistent with Ontario Law the standard form lease covers the bases. It, through the formatting process will call your attention to some of the things that landlords may want to include in a lease that they technically do not have to address (ex. smoking). As time goes on, a landlord may discover that there are certain rules and requirements in relation to the property that in future versions of the lease they can add.
Michael K. E. Thiele
www.ottawalawyers.com
Fairly often I get an inquiry from a "new" landlord who is in the process of renting out their rental unit for the first time. In getting ready to rent out the unit they are looking for a blank lease for their tenant(s) to sign. For many years, this request for a blank lease brought on much consternation. While a great deal of the rental relationship between landlord and tenant is governed by the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), and further the Residential Tenancies Act makes any lease clause that is inconsistent with the RTA void (see section 4 RTA), a lease may still contain some unique clauses that are specific to the circumstances.
The "unique" requirements often led to a mish-mash of conditions and a merging of a variety of leases. Still today you can find leases dealing with water-closets, coal chutes and stabling of horses. The biggest problem in these leases is the inconsistency that arises through the lease. Clauses are contradictory and the result is confusion and lack of clarity. When this occurs, the law provides that any ambiguity is read or interpreted in favour of the party (usually the tenant) who did NOT draft the lease. Hence, if you have a messy lease you will not be able to rely on vague terms to insist that the lease means one thing when it could reasonably bear the interpretation of meaning many other things.
The issue with confusing leases and bookstore leases (i.e. off the spinny self-help shelf) has been addressed by the government. There is now a "standard form lease" that is required to be used in the vast majority of residential rental situations. That lease can be found at this LINK which is the website for the Ontario Central Forms Repository.
This standard form lease became available and is required to be used in most private residential tenancy agreements entered on or after April 30, 2018. The failure to use this form has potential negative consequences for landlords. As you work your way through the form you will find spaces to include special clauses and specific rules for the rental unit. Including unique clauses in this standard form does not make an otherwise illegal clause valid. Anything "unique" that you want to include still needs to be consistent with the RTA.
For the "new" landlord who is looking for a reasonable lease that is consistent with Ontario Law the standard form lease covers the bases. It, through the formatting process will call your attention to some of the things that landlords may want to include in a lease that they technically do not have to address (ex. smoking). As time goes on, a landlord may discover that there are certain rules and requirements in relation to the property that in future versions of the lease they can add.
Michael K. E. Thiele
www.ottawalawyers.com