All apartment buildings registered under the RentSafeTO program are subject to a building evaluation. Starting in 2023, all buildings will be evaluated every two years. The overall building evaluation score will determine next steps and if a building audit is required.
Learn more about the building evaluation process, the different areas that are inspected during an evaluation and how the building score is calculated.
Every year, the City compiles a list of all buildings that require an evaluation. A bylaw enforcement officer is assigned and building owner/operators are notified of the upcoming evaluation. Any new buildings that registered for the RentSafeTO program will be evaluated in the current evaluation cycle year.
The evaluation is scheduled so that the property owner, or a designate can be present to provide the bylaw enforcement officer access to locked common areas and/or facility amenities.
The Bylaw Enforcement Officer will take notes and photographs of their inspection. After the inspection, the total building evaluation score is calculated and made available to the building owner and operator to review and post on the Tenant Notification Board. If any violations are found that are considered to be health or life safety concerns, the officer will issue an Order to Comply or Notice of Violation.
Following the evaluation, the building owner/operator will be provided with a report of the inspection findings and the building’s evaluation score through the RentSafeTO Portal. Details about the most recent building evaluation must be posted on the Tenant Notification Board.
Building owner/operators will be provided through the RentSafeTO portal with a copy of the property’s building evaluation results, which will include the evaluation score.
Building owners/operators are required to share the score and details of each evaluation with existing tenants and any prospective tenant. They are also required to post the most recent building evaluation on the Tenant Notification Board.
Building owners/operators now have the option to apply for a re-evaluation if they are unsatisfied with their building evaluation scores and if the following criteria has been met:
Re-evaluations must be requested through the RentSafeTO Portal which building owners and operators can access using their assigned login and PIN. Once logged, building owners and operators must complete the full application, including payment. After 15 days of receiving your building evaluation score, the option to apply for re-evaluation will not be available. Once the application is received, City staff will contact the designated contact on file to confirm receipt and provide a date for re-evaluation.
Please be aware that the re-evaluation fee is non-refundable. Scores may potentially be lower after a re-evaluation and cannot be reverted to the original scores. Please carefully consider whether a re-evaluation is necessary before proceeding with the request.
If you have any questions or require assistance with the application, please contact the RentSafeTO team by email at RentSafeTO@toronto.ca or by phone at 416-396-7228.
Buildings that receive evaluations scores in the bottom 2.5 percentile of buildings evaluated in that year will receive an audit.
Audits include a comprehensive inspection of all common areas, including but not limited to the lobby, hallways, stairwells, underground elements (such as parking garages) and exterior grounds.
During an audit, the RentSafeTO team will be on-site and will go door-to-door educate tenants about the program and enable tenants to submit complaints about property standard issues. These complaints will then be given to building owner/operator so that they can respond and fix the issues. The RentSafeTO team will follow-up on complaints submitted during the audit and take appropriate action, if required.
The building owner/operator is required to post a notice on the Tenant Notification Board informing tenants of the upcoming audit, 30 days before its scheduled date.
Depending on the result of the building audit, the City may take enforcement action, including issuing Orders to Comply, Notice(s) of Violation and/or fines.
All issued Orders are sent by registered mail and/or hand delivered to the building owner/operator and common area Orders must be posted on the Tenant Notification Board. When the Order expires, the Officer will follow up to inspect if the work was completed and in compliance with the City’s bylaws.
Information about audit-related fees can be found on the RentSafeTO Fees & Fines webpage.