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I am one of you, a Landlord... We always want a good tenant who pays his rent without fuss and we can get  return on our investment without any fuss..

I just want to share few Residential Tenacies Act  which has been in effect from January 31, 2007,

The Residential Tenancies Act

2009 Rent Increase Guideline

Each year the Ontario government announces the province’s rent increase guideline for the following year. The annual rent increase guideline is the maximum percentage by which a landlord can increase the rent for most sitting residential tenants without approval from the Landlord and Tenant Board.

The 2009 guideline is 1.8 per cent.

The new rent increase guideline applies to a rent increase that begins any time between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009 and applies to most residential units in Ontario.

The 2010 guideline is 2.1 per cent.

The new rent increase guideline applies to a rent increase that begins any time between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2010 and applies to most residential units in Ontario.

In most cases, the rent for a unit can be increased if at least 12 months have passed since the tenant first moved in or since his or her last rent increase. The tenant must be given proper written notice of the rental increase at least 90 days before the rent increase takes effect.

Who is responsible for maintaining the unit?

It is the landlord's responsibility to maintain the unit and ensure that it is in a good state of repair, even if:

• the tenant was aware of problems in the unit before they moved into it, or,

• the landlord puts into the lease that the tenant is responsible for maintenance.

However, the tenant is responsible for keeping the unit clean, up to the standard that most people consider ordinary or normal cleanliness. The tenant is also responsible for repairing or paying for any damage to the rental property caused by the tenant, their guests or another person living in the rental unit.

Notice to End a Tenancy

Landlord must give proper notice

A landlord can end a tenancy only for the reasons allowed by the Act.

In most cases, the first step is for the landlord to give the tenant a notice in writing that they want the tenant to move out.

There are proper forms a landlord must use for giving a notice to end the tenancy are available from the Board. There are different notices for different reasons.

Landlords must use the correct notice form and fill it out completely and accurately to ensure that the tenant receives all the information that the Act requires.

If the landlord does not give the tenant all the information required by the Act, the notice may be void.

And, if the landlord files an application to evict the tenant based on an incomplete or incorrect notice, the application may be dismissed.

Reasons for ending a tenancy

The Act allows a landlord to give a tenant notice to end the tenancy early if the tenant, the tenant’s guest or someone else who lives in the rental unit does something they should not do, or does not do something they should. This is sometimes called ending a tenancy “for cause”.

Some examples of “for cause” reasons for ending a tenancy are:

• not paying the rent in full,

• causing damage to the rental property,

• disturbing other tenants or the landlord, and

• illegal activity in the rental unit or residential complex.

There are also other reasons for ending a tenancy that are not related to what the tenant has done, or not done. These are sometimes called “no fault” reasons for ending a tenancy.

Some examples of “no fault” reasons for ending a tenancy are:

the landlord plans to do major repairs or renovations that require a building permit and the work cannot be done unless the rental unit is empty,

the landlord requires the rental unit because the landlord, a member of the landlord’s immediate family or their caregiver wish to move into the unit, and

the landlord has agreed to sell the property and the purchaser requires all or part of the property because the purchaser, a member of the purchaser’s immediate family or their caregiver wish to move into the unit. (This reason for eviction only applies in rental buildings with three or fewer units and in condominiums.)

When the landlord must give notice

Where a notice to end a tenancy must be given, the landlord must give the notice to the tenant before the termination date (the day the tenancy will end). The amount of advance notice depends on the reason for ending the tenancy.

Tenant’s remedy

For some of the for cause reasons for ending a tenancy, a tenant can prevent the tenancy from ending by stopping the behaviour referred to in the notice, or by doing what the notice requests. This is a called a tenant’s remedy. The notice explains what this is, and gives a deadline for the tenant to comply. If the tenant does what the notice asks them to do by the deadline, the notice to end the tenancy is then void. The landlord cannot apply to the Board to evict a tenant based on a void notice.

For those reasons for ending a tenancy that do not have a remedy, the tenant cannot do anything to void the notice. However, this does not mean the tenant has to move out.

If the tenant does not move out after receiving a notice to end the tenancy, the landlord can file an application to the Board to end the tenancy. The Board will decide if the tenancy should end after holding a hearing. Both the landlord and the tenant can come to the hearing and explain their side of the story to a Member of the Board. (For information about when a landlord can apply to the Board see the Application to the Board section).

Application to the Board

Applying for approval to end the tenancy

A landlord can apply to the Board for approval to end a tenancy if:

• the landlord gave the tenant a notice to end the tenancy,

• the landlord and tenant have an agreement to end the tenancy,

• the landlord wants to evict an unauthorized occupant,

• the tenant gave the landlord a notice to end the tenancy,

• the tenant breached a condition of a Board order or mediated settlement and the order or settlement allowed the landlord to apply to end the tenancy,

• the tenant abandoned the rental unit, or

• the tenant was the superintendent and the superintendent’s employment has ended.

If there is a tenant remedy, the landlord cannot file an application to the Board unless the tenant fails to correct the behavior referred to in the notice, or fails to do what the notice requested, by the deadline set out in the notice.

Where the tenant does not have a remedy, the landlord can file their application as soon as they give the notice to the tenant.

Deadline to apply

In most cases, there is a deadline by which the landlord must file their application to the Board.

Most, but not all, landlord applications must be made within 30 days of the termination date set out in the notice. However, there is no deadline for making an application to terminate a tenancy where the landlord has given the tenant a Notice to End a Tenancy Early for Non-Payment of Rent (Form N4).

New Fee for Landlord Applications

As of April 6, 2009, the fees for landlord applications for evictions and for applications to collect arrears was raised from $150 to $170 per application. The fee for all other applications remains the same.