RentSafeTO: Apartment Building Standards is a bylaw enforcement program that ensures apartment building owners comply with building maintenance standards. The program applies to apartment buildings with three or more storeys and 10 or more units.
Residents need to contact their landlord first and submit service requests for issues such as pests, low or no heat, plumbing problems, leaky ceilings or problems in the common areas of the building.
Landlords need to respond to urgent service requests, such as no heat or water, within 24 hours. Non-urgent service requests need to be responded to within seven (7) days. If you get no action from your landlord and problems persist, you can contact 311 for the RentSafeTO team.
Owners of rental apartment buildings are required to register and comply with the RentSafeTO program. Learn more about what building owners must do to comply.
If landlords do not comply with the maintenance standards, the RentSafeTO team can issue orders and charge landlords, which can result in substantial fines. The City can also have a contractor complete any necessary work and place the costs on the building’s property taxes.
Condo buildings, townhomes, or units in a private home (basement or main floor apartment) are not part of the RentSafeTO program. If you are renting an apartment in a building that is not part of the RentSafeTO program and experience a problem, please talk to your landlord first and submit a service request. If you get no action from your landlord and problems persist, you can contact 311 to have the City investigate.
If you have issues with the condition of the apartment that you are renting (such as plumbing problems, no or low heat, a broken window) or the common areas of your building, talk to your landlord or building manager and submit a service request in writing. Use this service request form as a guide: English French
Make service requests in writing and keep copies of your requests. Your landlord must track these service requests and keep copies from the past two years. You can request to see these records. Learn more about landlord record-keeping requirements.
Your landlord needs to respond to urgent service requests within 24 hours. Service requests are urgent if they are related to vital services, such as:
When the service request is not urgent, you landlords needs to response within seven (7) days. Allow your landlord reasonable time to make the repairs.
If you get no action from your landlord and problems persist, contact 311 for the RentSafeTO team. You can call 311 or email 311@toronto.ca to submit a complaint (service request) to the City.
If you get no action from your landlord and problems persist, contact 311 for the RentSafeTO team. You can call 311 or email 311@toronto.ca to submit a complaint (service request) to the City.
Once you submit a complaint (service request) through 311, the RentSafeTO team will reach out to you.
If your complaint is urgent and related to vital services, the RentSafeTO team will respond within 24 hours. If your complaint is about a non-urgent issue then the team will respond within five (5) days.
The RentSafeTO team will come and inspect your issue. If your landlord does not resolve your issue in a reasonable amount of time, the team can issue orders and charge landlords, which can result in substantial fines.
The City can also have a contractor complete any necessary work and place the costs on the building’s property taxes.
If you submit a complaint (service request) to the City through 311, you can check the status using the reference number provided to you. Enter your reference number in the Status Tracking box at the bottom of the toronto.ca home page and click “GO.”
You can also check the history of bylaw violations at an address.
Once you have submitted a complaint (service request) to the City, you can escalate it if:
You can escalate your complaint by contacting 311. You will then be provided with the name and contact number of the Supervisor responding to your complaint.
Vital services in your building include hydro (electricity), gas, heat, hot or cold water, breach of building security or problems with the outside of the building.
A vital service disruption is an event where any vital services is disrupted.
Landlords are required to develop and maintain a Vital Service Disruption Plan.
Failure to develop, maintain and implement a Vital Service Disruption Plan will be an offence under the Apartment Buildings bylaw.
Learn more about landlord responsibilities during a vital service disruption.
This summer, since most publicly accessible air-conditioned spaces are closed to the public due to COVID-19, the City will operate Emergency Cooling Centres across the city during Heat Warnings, as declared by Environment and Climate Change Canada. These Emergency Cooling Centres will open during Heat Warnings. Find the cool space closest to you.
If your building has air conditioning provided by your landlord, the Property Standards bylaw requires that the air conditioning is turned on between June 2 and September 14. But, if it is hot outside, your landlord can turn it on earlier as long as the indoor temperature does not go below 21 Celsius.
City of Toronto bylaws do not prohibit window air conditioning units in apartment buildings.
If the City determines that a window air conditioning unit may be unsafe, it may require your landlord to prove that a qualified tradesperson has installed, or confirmed proper installation and maintenance of, the window air conditioning unit.
There are no City bylaw provisions requiring this proof from tenants or allowing landlords to require this proof from tenants. However, the terms of the lease agreement between the landlord (apartment building owner) and you (tenant) may include requirements concerning air conditioning in the rental unit. As a tenant, you may want to seek legal advice and information on how the Residential Tenancies Act applies.
Download the frequently asked questions on window air conditioning in apartment buildings.
All landlords are responsible for maintaining a unit and making sure it is free of pests, such as ants, cockroaches, bedbugs, spiders, mice and rats.
Once your landlord is aware of pests at the property, they need to:
Landlords are required to also post the following on the tenant notification board: pest management plans including documentation of pest control services and schedule, service standards and product information related to pest control activity.
Landlords will work with Toronto Public Health to respond to bed bug infestation complaints, where it may be a health hazard.
If you have concerns about pests, speak to your landlord or property manager and submit a service request. If you get no action from your landlord and problems persist, you can contact 311 for the RentSafeTO team.
While pest management is the landlord’s responsibility, the following tips can help prevent pest infestations in your unit:
You must allow your landlord to treat your unit for pests. Landlords must notify you ahead of time about what is required to prepare the unit for treatment, such as emptying cabinets, removing furniture from walls, etc.
In order to keep tenants up-to-date, a notification board must be posted in a central location in the building. Electronic notification boards are allowed as long as all required information can be displayed and read easily by tenants. Hard copies of the required information must be made available to tenants and prospective tenants upon request. Learn about the information that must be posted on the tenant notification board.
If you do not see this board in your building, or do not have access to an electronic version, contact 311 for the RentSafeTO team.
For your protection, City bylaws require window safety devices on rental apartment windows that:
Window safety devices must prevent any part of the window from opening more than 10 centimetres, which is the amount of space a child can crawl through.
You may be fined if you remove window safety devices.
Your landlord is required to:
Your landlord is responsible for maintaining a capital plan to include a five (5) year forecast of major building repairs that lists when each item is expected to be replaced or updated. Examples of capital elements include: roof, elevators, windows, flooring and wall finishes, handrails, and mechanical systems.
You can request to view this plan at any time. Your landlord need to provide this within 60 days of your request.
Apartment building owners and operators are required to:
The City is also conducting proactive inspections of buildings that may be at higher risk of electrical malfunction. Learn more about the inspections, including those identified for the first round of inspections.
The RentSafeTO team will conduct inspections at every apartment building at least once every three years, based on scoring. Learn more about the different areas that are inspected during a building evaluation.
Your building owner will be provided with a copy of the property’s building evaluation results, which will include the evaluation score.
Your landlord need to post copies of the most recent building evaluation result received from the City on the tenant notification board.
The overall building evaluation score will determine if a full building audit is required.
If your building fails its evaluation by scoring less than 50 per cent, the RentSafeTO team will follow up with a building audit. During an audit, all the common areas of the building are inspected. This includes the underground garage as well as the building’s exterior grounds.
Your landlord is required to post a notice on the tenant notification board informing you of the upcoming audit, 30 days before its scheduled date.
If possible, during the audit the RentSafeTO team will be in the lobby of your building to take complaints (service requests) about issues in your unit. These complaints will then be given to your landlord so that they can respond and fix the issues. The RentSafeTO team will follow-up on your complaints submitted during the audit and take appropriate action, if required.
Look up your building evaluation score. The dataset contains evaluation scores for all buildings that are registered in the RentSafeTO program.
Apartment Building Audit Reports (2008 – 2017) from the Multi-Residential Apartment Buildings (MRAB) Audit and Enforcement Program are archived below.
Type (don’t copy and paste) your email into the box below, check the box next to the e-update description and then click “Subscribe”. You will receive an email with instructions to confirm your request.