Your Guide to Assignment and Subletting in Ontario

Over the last year, we’ve noticed a spike in lease assignments and subletting in Toronto. Due to a combination of dropping rental prices, increased ability to work and study from home, and a slower economy, many Toronto tenants are deciding to move out of their current home. If you may be in a similar case, we have gathered everything you need to know for subletting or assigning your lease in Ontario:

Learn the difference

It is important to understand the difference between assigning your unit and subletting it:

• When you’re assigning your lease, you are assigning your rights and responsibilities as a tenant to another tenant, the so-called “lease assignee”. Following the assignment, your relationship with your landlords will end and you will no longer have the right to return to your property.
• When you sublet your unit out, you’re still the tenant and you will still be responsible for whatever happens at the property, including any property maintenance and rent payment obligations.

Make sure you do your research and understand the assignment/subletting process in Ontario. Photo by William Iven.

Understand the process

In order to assign a lease or sublet in Ontario, you have to get your landlord’s permission to do so, and we recommend you keep written proof of the request. Your landlord must respond to you within seven days since the request was made, and cannot unreasonably refuse consent to an assignment, unless the person you want to assign or sublet to has been known to cause problems with landlords in the past, such as damaging the property or not paying rent. Keep in mind that you might be charged an administrative fee, often up to a few hundred dollars, from your landlord to approve the assignment — including the cost of doing a credit check.

What if my request for a lease assignment/sublet gets rejected?

If your landlord rejects your request to assign or sublet the unit without a good, reasonable explanation, or if your landlord does not respond within seven calendar days to your request, you’re allowed to end your tenancy under the Residential Tenancies Act with 30 days’ notice, using the form N9: Tenant’s Notice to End the Tenancy.

Quick tips!

To make the assigning/subletting process a smoother experience, here are some tips:

• Check if you are allowed to assign or sublet your unit. There are cases in which you are not allowed to do so, such as if you are a student living in the housing provided by your institution or if you are a tenant living in subsidized housing.
• Send a written request for approval to your landlord via email or text to keep a clear record trail of your conversation with the landlord.
• Before you share more details about the tenant you want to assign or sublet to, check if their profile is similar to you in terms of credit score and income level. See if you could conduct reference checks to confirm the person is responsible for their rent payments and property maintenance.
• In the case of subletting, make sure your sub-tenant understands their responsibilities under your lease. For example, if you were responsible for exterior maintenance under the lease, make sure your sub-tenant assumes the responsibility, or else, you might receive an invoice from your landlord for something like snow removal. In the case of condo buildings, make sure they understand the condo rules as well.
• You’re not allowed to charge the sub-tenant more rent than what you pay to the landlord and cannot charge any fee for the new tenant to take over the lease.
• If a tenant has assigned a lease or sublet without the landlord’s permission, the landlord has 60 days from discovering the new tenant to apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board to terminate the entire tenancy. However, if the landlord fails to file the application within 60 days of discovering the unauthorized occupant, the unauthorized occupant will become a tenant.
• Looking to sublet for a shorter term or for Airbnb purposes? Make sure to check the laws around short term rentals, as cities like Toronto have their own short-term rental regulations.

Make sure that the person you are assigning/subletting to understands their roles and responsibilities as a new occupant. Photo by Cytonn Photography.

Assigning a lease or subletting in Ontario is a viable option for tenants who need to move out of their unit, but it should be done properly to avoid any unwanted consequences in the future. Take your time to familiarize yourself with the process first. For more useful tips and advice on renting in Ontario, feel free to check out our blog!