Landlord guide · 2026 rules
Most of what I do is leases, so this is the process I actually run: price it right the first week, market it to every agent in the city, screen hard but fairly, and paper it properly. Here's all of it, including what you're allowed to ask for.
The free rent estimate gives you a suggested asking range and the comparables behind it within one business day. Or look up your neighbourhood in the rent guide first.
Active listings tell you what other landlords hope for. Leased comparables tell you what tenants paid. In a building with turnover, the last three leases of your floor plan set the range; the finish, floor, view and whether parking is included move you within it. Overpricing by $150 in week one usually costs you a month of vacancy, which is $2,500 you never get back. In 2026 the Toronto condo rental market has more supply than 2023, and the units that lease in the first ten days are the ones priced at the market on day one.
One month's rent, applied to the last month, plus a refundable key deposit. No damage or pet deposits. You owe annual interest on the rent deposit at the guideline rate — calculate it here.
Units first occupied after November 15, 2018 are exempt from the annual cap. Older units are limited to the guideline (2.1% for 2026), once every 12 months, with 90 days' notice on Form N1. Check your address.
You can verify income, credit and references. You cannot decline someone for family status, receipt of assistance, ethnicity, disability, age or the other protected grounds, and "no students" or "no kids" in an ad is a complaint waiting to happen.
Most good tenants in Toronto now come through an agent, and every agent searches MLS. A listing on MLS syndicates to realtor.ca and dozens of rental portals automatically. Professional photos, a floor plan and a video walkthrough are not optional; they are what gets a showing booked instead of scrolled past. Facebook Marketplace and Kijiji bring volume but also most of the scams and no-shows. When I list a unit, it goes on MLS the same day the photos are done, and showings are booked through a system that confirms with the tenant and locks the building schedule.
The offer arrives on an OREA Agreement to Lease with a schedule (term, rent, deposit, who pays which utilities, parking, locker, whether pets are allowed). Once accepted and the deposit is in trust, the mandatory Ontario Standard Lease is signed before move-in. Add your building's rules as an appendix. Do a dated, photographed move-in inspection with the tenant. Set up the rent to arrive automatically. Diarize the deposit interest and, if the unit is rent-controlled, the earliest legal increase date.
One month's rent plus HST, on closing. For that you get the pricing above, photos and floor plan, MLS and portal exposure, every showing handled, applications screened within the rules, the negotiation, the paperwork, and someone to call when the tenant's dishwasher floods on a Sunday. I also tell you when a unit is worth $100 less than you hoped, which is the part that saves you the vacancy.
The norm in Toronto is one month's rent plus HST, paid on closing of the lease. That covers pricing against real comparables, professional photos, MLS exposure to every agent in the GTA, showings, screening, the offer negotiation and the Ontario Standard Lease. A good tenant at the right rent pays for it many times over; a bad one costs far more than the fee.
No. Ontario landlords may collect a rent deposit of no more than one month's rent, which must be applied to the last month of the tenancy, and a refundable key deposit at the actual replacement cost. Damage deposits, pet deposits and 'cleaning fees' are not allowed. You owe interest on the rent deposit every year at the rent increase guideline rate.
If it was first occupied as a residence after November 15, 2018, it is exempt from the annual guideline and you can raise rent by any amount with 90 days' notice, once every 12 months. Older units are capped at the guideline, which is 2.1% for 2026. Check any address instantly with my rent control checker.
A completed rental application, proof of income (employment letter, pay stubs or an offer letter), a credit report, government ID, and references. What you cannot do is screen on anything the Ontario Human Rights Code protects: family status, receipt of public assistance, ethnicity, age, disability and so on. You also cannot require a guarantor or a larger deposit as a workaround. I screen thoroughly and within the rules.
Usually not permission, but most corporations require you to register the tenant and give them a copy of the rules, and many prohibit short-term rentals outright. Check the declaration and rules in your status certificate, and register with management before move-in. Toronto also requires a short-term rental registration if you ever rent for under 28 days.
The Ontario Standard Lease is mandatory for almost all residential tenancies. In practice the offer is written on the OREA Agreement to Lease with a schedule, then the Standard Lease is signed before move-in. Both are handled for you when I lease the unit.
Yes. Net rental income (rent minus mortgage interest, condo fees, property tax, insurance, management and repairs) is added to your income. Keep every receipt. If you ever sell, a unit that was never your principal residence is subject to capital gains tax, which is a conversation to have with your accountant before you buy, not after.
Send me the address and a few details. Within one business day you'll have a suggested asking range, the comparables behind it, and a plain read on whether it's rent-controlled.