The rental of accommodation
18 Jul 2019
The lease is a contract between the tenant and the Lessee (the one who leases the unit and is most often the owner or a management agency, or others).
The landlord undertakes to offer the tenant a housing in good condition and to assure them full enjoyment of these places.
The tenant undertakes to pay his rent on time.
This contract is signed in the case of the rental of an apartment, a house, a mobile home, a plot of land, a room within a residence, etc.
Since September 1st, 1996, it is mandatory to use the Rental Form of the Régie du logement for any rental lease
whether it is a room, an apartment, a condominium, a house, etc.
This form must also be completed for the rental of services (e.g., concierge, transportation), accessories (e.g., furniture, refrigerator, stove), outbuildings (e.g., garage, shed, parking), if not already included in the lease.
It is available in duplicate.
You can buy its at many stores or online at Publications Québec.
The lessee is required to provide the tenant with a copy of the entire lease.
Additional information can be provided to the lease using notices.
These notices must be sent in writing to the address indicated on the lease.
You can find different types and models of notices relating to the lease, compliant on the website of the Régie du logement.
DID YOU KNOW THAT :
* If you have just signed a lease as a tenant, can you know the amount of rent paid by the former tenant? The landlord must then inform the tenant in writing unless the accommodation is rented in:
- a housing co-op of which the tenant is a member;
- low-income housing;
- a newly built building;
- a building where no accommodation was previously rented.
In these cases, he is not obliged to inform the tenant of the rent paid before his arrival.
* Any clauses mentioned in your lease are not necessarily valid.
For example, a lease clause may have no effect when it:
- restricts or relieves the landlord of any responsibility for the dwelling, or makes the tenant liable for damage caused without his fault;
- prevents the transfer of the lease or the sub-lease of the premises;
- aims to change tenants' rights because during the lease period there has been an increase in the number of occupants in the dwelling (unless justified by the size of the dwelling);
- stipulates that in the event of default of payment for one month’s rent, the landlord may demand payment of the rent for all months remaining in the lease;
- is intended to readjust rent in-lease in a fixed term lease of 12 months or less.
* If a lease does not have an end date, the tenant or the landlord may terminate the lease by giving notice of 1 to 2 months. In the case of a fixed-term lease, this is not possible, and one must wait until the end of the lease before being able to release oneself from its obligations in relation to the lease agreement.
* Even if there is a change of ownership, the tenant retains the rights and obligations that he has.
* It is permissible for a landlord to ask the tenant to waive his or her right to hold in place in exchange for a sum of money.
