First-Time Ontario Landlord: The Complete Checklist
One wrong form can let a tenant stop paying rent legally. This is the Ontario-specific checklist every first-time landlord should run before listing, screening, and signing.
The mistake that costs the most
The Ontario Standard Lease has been mandatory since April 30, 2018. If you use a DIY lease and the tenant requests the Standard Lease in writing, failing to provide it can let the tenant legally withhold a month of rent and keep it. Most first-time landlords have never heard this. Start with the lease, not the listing.
Ontario tenancy law strongly protects tenants in possession. Getting a tenant in is easy. Removing one who stops paying can take many months at the Landlord and Tenant Board. That asymmetry means the work you do before signing is the work that protects you.
This checklist walks through the mandatory Standard Lease, the expensive beginner mistakes, exactly what you can and cannot ask, the screening basics, an N-form cheat sheet, and the records you must keep.
1. Use the Mandatory Standard Lease
For most private residential tenancies that began on or after April 30, 2018, Ontario law requires the Residential Tenancy Agreement, the Standard Lease, Form 2229E. It is free and published by the provincial government. It is not optional and a custom contract does not replace it.
If you did not give the tenant a Standard Lease, the tenant can ask for one in writing. You then have 21 days to provide it. If you do not, the tenant may withhold one month of rent. If you still do not provide it within 30 days after they began withholding, the tenant does not have to repay that month. They may also be able to end a fixed-term tenancy early on 60 days notice.
You can add reasonable extra terms in the lease, but a term that conflicts with the Residential Tenancies Act is void even if the tenant signed it. A no-pets clause, for example, is generally unenforceable in Ontario.
2. Avoid the Expensive Beginner Mistakes
Each of these is common, each is avoidable, and each can cost a first-time landlord thousands of dollars or months of delay.
Using a DIY or off-the-shelf lease instead of the Standard Lease
The Ontario Standard Lease (Form 2229E) has been mandatory for most residential tenancies since April 30, 2018. If you do not use it, the tenant can demand it in writing. If you do not provide it within 21 days, the tenant can legally withhold one month of rent. If you still do not provide it within 30 days of that, the withheld month is theirs to keep, permanently, and they may also end the tenancy early on 60 days notice. A homemade lease is not a minor shortcut. It hands the tenant a legal right to stop paying.
Skipping the move-in inspection and photos
Ontario does not have a mandatory move-in inspection form, but skipping documentation is one of the most expensive beginner errors. Without dated photos and a signed condition record at move-in, you cannot prove damage at move-out, and you cannot lawfully deduct from the last month rent deposit for damage anyway. Document every room with timestamped photos and a written condition list both parties sign.
Mishandling the rent deposit
In Ontario you may only collect a rent deposit equal to one rent period, and it must be applied to the last month of the tenancy, not to damage. You cannot collect a separate damage deposit, a key deposit beyond actual key cost, or a pet deposit. You must pay the tenant interest on the deposit every year at the rent increase guideline rate. Charging a prohibited deposit is a common and easily avoided mistake.
Treating post-dated cheques as a requirement
You may accept post-dated cheques or pre-authorized debit if the tenant offers them, but you cannot require them as a condition of renting. Making post-dated cheques or automatic withdrawal mandatory is prohibited under the Residential Tenancies Act. Ask, do not require.
Using the wrong notice form, or a letter instead of a form
Notices to end a tenancy must be on the correct official LTB form. A polite email or letter asking a tenant to leave has no legal effect. The wrong form, or a form filled in incorrectly, gets thrown out at the Board and you start over, often months later. Match the form to the reason before you serve anything.
Asking screening questions you are not allowed to ask
The Ontario Human Rights Code prohibits selecting tenants based on protected grounds including source of income, family status, age, disability, and more. You cannot reject an applicant because their income comes from ODSP, a pension, or support payments. You can assess whether the income, whatever its source, is real and sufficient. Knowing the line protects you from a human rights complaint.
3. What You Can and Cannot Ask
The Ontario Human Rights Code governs tenant selection. Ask the same things of every applicant, evaluate ability to pay, and never select on a protected ground.
You can ask for
Proof of income and employment, requested the same way from every applicant
Credit check, with the applicant's consent
Rental history and references from prior landlords
Government-issued ID to confirm identity at lease signing
You cannot require or select on
Source of income (employment vs ODSP, pension, child support, etc.)
Family status, including whether they have or plan to have children
A mandatory income-to-rent ratio used as an automatic disqualifier
Citizenship or immigration status as a selection ground
A damage deposit, pet deposit, or post-dated cheques as a requirement
4. Screening Basics
A defensible Ontario screening process is consistent and source-blind. Request the same documents from everyone, assess whether income is real and sufficient, and decide on ability to pay rather than how the money is earned.
The weak point is income verification. Pay stubs, screenshots, and offer letters are easy to fabricate with free tools. Document review alone is no longer reliable. See our guide on how to spot fake pay stubs and our full Ontario tenant screening guide for the end-to-end process.
The strongest check goes upstream of the document. Verifying income through the bank that holds the account removes the editable PDF from the equation entirely.
Bank-connected verification
Your first tenant is the one you cannot afford to get wrong.
A single bad placement can wipe out a year of returns. ScreenTenants sends your tenant a secure link. They connect their bank directly. You get a verified income report with 6 months of history. $22/check, no subscription.
Get early access5. The N-Form Cheat Sheet
Ontario tenancy notices live on official LTB forms. Using the wrong one, or a letter, can cost you months. Two of these changed under Bill 60. See our Bill 60 Ontario guide for the new N4 and N12 rules.
6. Record-Keeping
Signed Standard Lease and any reasonable additional terms.
Dated move-in photos and a written condition record both parties signed.
Rent ledger: every payment, date received, and method.
Annual deposit interest paid to the tenant, with the rate and date.
Copies of every notice served, plus proof and method of service.
Maintenance requests received and the dates you responded.
Screening records applied equally to every applicant, kept consistently.
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Related Guides
Law Update
Bill 60 Ontario: The 7-Day N4 and What Changed
The new non-payment timeline, the shorter review window, and the N12 compensation change.
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Ontario Tenant Screening: A Complete Landlord Guide
The legal, end-to-end process for screening tenants from listing to lease signing.
Guide
How to Spot a Fake Pay Stub
The eight red flags Ontario landlords use to catch falsified income before signing.
Application Form
Ontario Rental Application: What Landlords Can Ask
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Entry Rules
Landlord Entry Rules Ontario: 24-Hour Notice Guide
When notice is required, what it must say, emergency entry, and the T2 risk if you get it wrong.
Arrears Collection
Collecting Rent Arrears in Ontario: L10 Guide
The L10 application, Small Claims Court, garnishment, and the realistic 2026 LTB backlog timelines.
Early Access
Get your first placement right the first time.
ScreenTenants connects directly to your tenant's bank. You get 6 months of verified income history before you sign. $22/check, no subscription.
Join the waitlistStatutory references
Sections of Ontario law this guide is grounded in. Read the source text before acting on a specific situation.
- RTA s.5— Application of the Act to residential tenancies
- RTA s.12.1— Mandatory standard form of lease (Form 2229) for most new tenancies
- RTA s.116— Notice of rent increase (Form N1) — 90 days written notice
- RTA s.234— Offences — what a landlord cannot ask or demand of an applicant
About this guide
Written and maintained by the ScreenTenants.ca editorial team and reviewed against Ontario's Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 and the Landlord and Tenant Board's published rules. Last reviewed June 2026.
This is general information for Ontario landlords, not legal advice. Rules change and individual situations vary — confirm details with the LTB or a licensed paralegal or lawyer before acting on a specific matter.
See our editorial policy for sources, review cadence, and corrections.