What are my responsibilities as a tenant?

To avoid getting into trouble and losing your home, you need to pay rent on time and maintain your rental unit.

As a tenant, you need to:

  • Pay your rent on time. If you're late or you only pay the partial amount, your landlord can take action against you and try to evict you.
  • Keep your home clean. Your landlord has to make sure your unit is healthy, safe and properly maintained, but you're responsible for making sure it's generally clean. 
  • Repair damage that you cause. Fix anything that you or your guests damage or break. If the damage is major, notify your landlord before you make any repairs.
  • Honour your lease or tenancy agreement. You have to follow the terms in your lease, but some leases have illegal terms that break the rules of the Residential Tenancies Act. You don't have to follow anything in the lease that's illegal, like "no pets."