RENTING YOUR FIRST HOME IN CANADA

A Home of Your Own If you are new to Canada, one of the first things you will probably need to do is find a place you and your family can call home. For most newcomers, your first home will likely be a rented house or apartment. Renting a home should provide you a safe place where you can begin to adjust to your new life in Canada. It can also give you the time to look for a home to buy without feeling pressured into making a quick decision. This Guide was developed by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) to help make it easier for you to find and rent a home or apartment in Canada.As Canada’s national housing agency, CMHC has been helping Canadians, including new Canadians, gain access to a wide choice of quality, affordable homes for more than 60 years. Types of RenTal Housing There are several different types of rental housing available in Canada.These include: n apartments — an apartment is a self-contained,single-family unit in a building or house. Most apartments have one, two or three bedrooms;“bachelor” units have a combined living area that also serves as a bedroom. n single-family detached — a home containing one dwelling unit, that stands alone and sits on its own lot thereby offering a greater degree of privacy. n duplexes or triplexes — a house that is divided into two units is a duplex.Divided into three, it’s a triplex. Often,the owner of the house will live in one unit and rent out the others. n Row House or Townhouse — three or more units are built side-by-side and share adjoining walls. Townhouses may also be “stacked,” which means that the top two floors will consist of a separate unit from the bottom two floors n Rooms — large homes are sometimes divided into several private bedrooms that are rented to individuals, with a common, shared kitchen and bathroom. TenanTs and landloRds One of the first questions many newcomers have is: “What are my rights and responsibilities as a tenant, and what is my landlord responsible for?” Your landlord is the person who owns the house or building you live in. For larger buildings, the landlord may also hire a property manager or superintendent to collect rent and manage the building. Landlord and tenant responsibilities can be different in different provinces/territories. Fact sheets are available at cmhc.ca that describe aspects of the rental process and legislation in each province/territory. Contact information for the local rental authorities and related links are also included. You can find your provincial/territorial fact sheet in Your Guide to Renting a Home at www.cmhc.ca. In general, your landlord is responsible for: n Collecting the rent; n Keeping your building safe and in a good state of repair; n Providing everything that comes with the apartment and that is included in your rent (such as the refrigerator, stove, heating system); and n Handling and paying for repairs when something in your home breaks. 2 Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation For your part, as a tenant, you are responsible for: n Paying your rent in full and on time; n Keeping your home clean and well maintained; n Contacting the landlord whenever anything needs to be serviced or repaired; and n Allowing the landlord or manager to enter your home to carry out repairs, or to show the apartment to other tenants if you are moving out. Your landlord must provide you with proper notice before entering your apartment. Finding A Place To Rent Before you start looking for a place to rent, you need to decide where you want to live, how many rooms you will need and how much you can afford to pay. Try to be as flexible as possible, especially when choosing your first home. Also, be prepared to adapt to Canadian standards. For example, rental properties with more than 3 bedrooms are hard to find, so finding a home with three or more bedrooms can be difficult. You may have to accept a smaller place or a less central location until you can find what you really want. You may hear the term "subsidized" housing. It means that the government or a non-profit organization pays a part of the rent for a house or apartment based on certain rules, including the level of income of a person or family. The demand for subsidized housing is very high and the waiting period can be up to five years. Where and how to look After cost, location is often the most important thing to think about when looking for a place to live. Neighbourhoods that are close to work, schools, public transit and other services might cost more, but they can also save you time and money in commuting to work or school. Once you have chosen the areas where you would like to live, there are many places you can look to find houses or apartments that are available to rent. These include: n The classifieds section of your local newspaper (also known as “want ads”); n free community or ethnic newspapers; n Bulletin boards in grocery stores, libraries, laundromats, health clinics, thrift stores, community centres, service clubs or real estate offices; n lists of houses or apartments for rent at the public library or at university or college campus housing offices; n Websites of local newspapers or special websites that list houses or apartments for rent; n friends, relatives or coworkers who are familiar with the area to give you their recommendations. You can also simply visit neighbourhoods where you’d like to live and look for “For Rent” signs on houses or buildings. If you really like a particular building, ask the superintendent if there are any apartments available to rent now or in the near future.