La loi vos droits

Tenants - Your rights during a lease

Leases

A residential lease is a contract that is binding between you and your landlord. In this contract, you agree to pay rent, and the landlord agrees to let you reside in her dwelling and to ensure your peaceable enjoyment of it. In 1996, to reduce conflicts over lease agreements, the Régie du logement created a mandatory lease form.

All leases contain important elements that apartment-seekers would do well to learn about. In this Infosheet, Éducaloi explains the ins and outs of the residential lease.

What is a lease?

A lease is a contract to rent a dwelling that is signed between a tenant (lessee) and a landlord (lessor or owner). In it, the landlord agrees to provide the tenant with the peaceable enjoyment of the apartment in exchange for a rent.

A lease can have either a fixed duration (as in a 12-months lease) or an indefinite duration (as in a rent-by-month lease). Fixed duration leases end when the term has expired. Indefinite duration leases end when either the tenant or landlord chooses to put an end to the lease.

The lease and building by-laws must be written in French. However, if you and the landlord agree, you can draw up the lease in another language.

What is meant by the lease of a dwelling?

The lease of a dwelling, or residential lease, is a specific kind of lease. In fact, several provisions in the law apply specifically to this type of lease. A residential lease is not merely the typical apartment lease, in which you rent an apartment in a residential area. Residential leases can arise in several situations.

For example, a residential lease is signed when you rent a room, a mobile home, or even the land on which to place a mobile home.

The following leases are not residential:

• the lease of a room in a hotel;
  
• the lease of a room in a health and social services establishment;
  
• the lease of a room within the owner’s home if the owner isn’t renting out (or offering for rent) more than 2 rooms and if the room that is rented out does not have its own independent entrance and sanitary installations;
  
• the lease of a dwelling leased as a vacation resort;
  
• the lease of a dwelling in which more than 1/3 of the floor area is used for purposes other than residential purposes.

What formalities should be respected in a notice regarding the lease issued by the landlord or tenant?

Any notice concerning the lease, except for a landlord’s notice to gain access to the dwelling, must:

• be made in writing;
  
• be sent to the address shown on the lease or to the tenant’s new address;
  
• be written in the same language as the lease;
  
• follow the rules prescribed by regulation.

In general, any notice that fails to respect these conditions cannot be used against the recipient. It is as though notice was never given. For more information, please consult the website of the Régie du logement  (http://www.rdl.gouv.qc.ca/en/avis/avis.asp) to see sample notices.

Are the building’s by-laws considered as part of the lease?

Yes. A building’s by-laws are considered part of the lease; as such, the landlord is bound to give the tenant a copy of these by-laws before the lease is signed. Most often, by-laws address the enjoyment, use, and maintenance of individual dwellings and common areas.

These by-laws are important, especially when they prohibit you from having a pet in your dwelling. The lease and the by-laws are actually the only things that determine whether or not you have a right to keep pets in your dwelling (see the Infosheet entitled Pets and dwellings  (http://www.educaloi.qc.ca/en/loi/tenants/71/)).

Does the landlord have to give me a copy of the lease?

Yes. The landlord must give you a copy of the lease within 10 days of entering into it. Since September 1, 1996, the lease form of the Régie du logement is mandatory. It must be used for any new lease agreement, whether it is for a room, apartment, condominium, or house.

Upon renewal of your lease, you may agree with your landlord to change certain things in the lease. Before the renewal begins, the landlord must give you a written document listing all of the agreed upon changes done to the initial lease.

Can I find out how much the previous tenant paid in rent?

Yes. At the time when you are signing a new lease, the landlord must give you a notice that shows the lowest amount of rent paid in the 12 months preceding the start of your lease or the rent fixed by the Régie du logement.

The landlord does not need to divulge this information in cases where the leased dwelling is:

• a housing cooperative;
  
• low-cost housing;
  
• a new building; or
  
• a building whose destination (use) has recently been changed.

If you are a new tenant or subletting, and you are paying more rent than the rent paid in the 12 months prior to your lease, you can ask the Régie du logement to fix the amount of rent you should pay. However, this request must be made:

• within 10 days of signing the lease;
  
• within 2 months of the start of the lease, if you have not received the notice indicating the rent paid in the previous 12 months;
  
• within 2 months from the day you discover that the landlord made a false statement in his notice concerning the rent paid in the previous 12 months.

Are there clauses within a lease which are invalid?

Yes. In a lease, you and the landlord can agree on matters such as rent payments, the use of certain parts of the property (e.g., parking spaces), and any work to be carried out (e.g., general repairs, painting).

However, no clause in your lease agreement may contradict the mandatory provisions on residential leases. Any clauses that do not adhere to the mandatory rules will be of no effect, which means they will be treated as though they do not exist.

Here are some clauses that, if written in a lease, are invalid:

• a clause that limits or releases the landlord from his responsibility concerning the dwelling or that makes you responsible for damages that are not your fault;
  
• a clause that provides that the landlord refuses any assignment of the lease or sublease of the dwelling;
  
• a clause that modifies your rights if the number of occupants in your dwelling increases during the term of your lease (unless this is justified by the size of the dwelling);
  
• a clause that makes the full amount of rent due if you fail to pay one rent instalment;
  
• a clause in a fixed-term lease of 12 months or less that provides for an adjustment of your rent during the term of your lease.

I only have a verbal lease. Do I still have rights?

Yes. The occupation of a dwelling with the landlord’s consent creates a “lease by sufferance.” Such a lease is valid and creates more or less the same rights and duties as a written lease. Moreover, if the lease is for an indefinite duration (there is no agreement with the landlord about when the lease will end or be renewed), it can be resiliated (cancelled) by the tenant upon one month’s notice.

It is important to remember that this is not the case for a fixed duration lease, which must be respected until it ends, except in situations set out by law or with the landlord’s consent. To find out more, read our Infosheet entitled “The resiliation of a lease by a tenant  (http://www.educaloi.qc.ca/en/loi/tenants/79/).”

My current landlord is selling the building in which I live. The future owner claims that I must leave. Do I have to leave?

No. The right to maintain occupancy continues to apply in favour of the tenant who respects his obligations, even if the building’s owner changes.

However, the new owner can require the tenant to leave if she wants to subdivide, demolish, or enlarge the dwelling, or if she wants to change its destination (its use). She can also take back the dwelling if she wants to live there herself or if she wants to house certain family members there. This may give the tenant a right to compensation. To find out more, read our Infosheet entitled “Repossession of a dwelling and eviction  (http://www.educaloi.qc.ca/en/loi/tenants/320/)”.

Apart from these situations, nothing prevents a landlord from offering a tenant money to renounce her right to maintain occupancy and require her to find a new dwelling. The tenant is free to accept or reject such an offer.

Useful Links :

1. Régie du logement website  [http://www.rdl.gouv.qc.ca/]