3. Residents: Residents are roommates who pay rent to another tenant who has all the legal rights and obligations of the unit. Residents are not part of the lease. Before moving into a unit, be sure to sign and keep a copy of your lease. Your lease must include all the terms and conditions associated with your unit. A tenant should review their lease and ensure that they comply with all specific responsibilities for cleaning a unit, as set out in the agreement. A tenant is expected to clean the inside of their rental unit – even if it wasn`t clean at the start of the tenancy: If your landlord doesn`t offer two ways to make an appointment or provide a copy of the condition inspection report on time, they lose the right to sue for damages against your safety and pet security deposit. A tenant who does not move on the day a termination takes effect to end the tenancy is called an overloaded tenant. In these situations, the landlord can apply for a property order to end the tenancy and money to cover costs, such as accommodation or storage costs for a new tenant.
At the end of a tenancy, landlords and tenants must inspect the rental unit together – sometimes called a “guided tour.” This should be done: 3. Your landlord cannot charge you a fee for guests, including overnight guests. However, if your guest damages property, engages in illegal activities, or violates the terms of your lease, your landlord may give one month`s notice to terminate the lease. If your lease states that a fee is charged to guests, you can easily dispute the fee because your landlord cannot circumvent the terms of the Tenancies Act. 3. Noise: Every tenant has the right to the peaceful enjoyment of his rental property. The definition of peaceful enjoyment can be difficult to address, but includes the following elements: 1) No inappropriate disturbances such as noise and smoke 2) Adequate privacy 3) No harassment 4) Reasonable use of common areas 5) A safe and well-maintained living unit. It is the responsibility of the tenant and landlord to complete an inspection report of the condition of the rental unit at the beginning of the tenancy and at the end of the tenancy. It is also your responsibility and that of your landlord to prepare an inspection report at any time during the rental when you purchase a new pet.
As a tenant, it is your responsibility to browse the rental unit with your landlord and document its condition using the BC State Inspection Form. You can find this form under tenants.bc.ca/condition-inspection-reports/ approved forms. Landlords must give tenants the necessary opportunities to inspect the rental unit and provide a copy of the completed condition inspection report within 15 days of the inspection. When following these steps, it is important to claim one of the deposits for damage to the rental unit. 6. Frustrated rentals: Your lease could end without notice if your contract is considered frustrated, meaning an unpredictable and uncontrollable situation like an earthquake, fire or flood occurs. If a rental is frustrated, the landlord is not obliged to pay the costs of moving or replacing damaged items. That`s why it`s extremely important to get rental insurance before you move into your unit – this way your insurance company can cover most of these costs. For more information on frustrated tenancies, see section 92 of the Residential Tenancies Act.
It is the landlord`s responsibility to schedule the condition inspection (or “visit”). Landlords and tenants should be flexible and reasonably appropriate when jointly agreeing on an appropriate time for the inspection. It is acceptable for a tenant to allow another person to participate in the inspection on their behalf – as long as they notify the landlord before the inspection. If you move before the end of your term lease – often referred to as “signing a lease” – your landlord may be entitled to money based on the rental income they have lost and if they have made reasonable efforts to find a replacement tenant. 8. Leases with a term of more than 20 years. 6. An explanation of the condition of the repair and the general condition of each room of the rental unit, including the following: entrance, living room, kitchen, dining room, stairs, hallways, bathrooms, bedrooms, storage room, cellar, outdoor space, parking. 3.
The lessor shall provide cleaning and other forms of services specified in the rental agreement. Evacuation Clauses: Evacuation clauses may only be used in the situations listed in Article 13.1 of the Housing Tenancies Ordinance. If your contract contains an eviction clause, you do not need to give proper notice before moving, as you have already accepted your moving date when you sign your lease. The landlord and tenant must inspect the rental unit together by completing a condition inspection report at the beginning and end of the tenancy. Both parties must sign and date the completed report. The landlord must bring a printed copy of the condition inspection report (PDF, 1.6 MB) that was completed at the beginning of the tenancy. This completed report serves as an official document of the condition of the rental unit. By comparing the move-in and moving condition inspection reports, landlords and tenants can determine if the rental unit has been damaged and who is responsible for the repairs. The tenant is not responsible for the reasonable wear and tear of the rental unit. If your landlord is required to re-rent your unit at a $25 discount to get a replacement tenant, they may be eligible for $25 per month for the remaining term of your agreement.
However, if your landlord can re-rent your unit for more than you paid, the extra money they will earn in the remaining months of your agreement can be applied or “offset” against any other money you owe your landlord for unpaid rent or damages. For more information, see RTB Policy Guideline 3. A landlord may charge a fee for moving between units in an apartment building if the tenant requests the move. This must be stated in the lease, and the fee must not exceed $15 or 3% of the monthly rent – whichever is greater. Before you move in, you should read your lease carefully and check if utilities are included in your rent. If utilities are not included in your rent, you will have to pay for them separately, either through the company that provides the utilities or through your landlord. If the utility bill is paid by your landlord, you can always ask to see the bill for each month. It is always extremely important to know how much utilities cost, as this varies greatly with each building. If your electricity meter is connected to multiple units, your electricity bill usually comes from your landlord and should be distributed fairly and evenly across all units. 2. Your landlord can request monthly inspections, but before your landlord enters your unit, they must notify you in writing for 24 hours and tell you the time, date and reason for entry. Before you sign your lease, you want to make sure you are subject to British Columbia`s Residential Tenancies Act (LRA).
The Residential Tenancies Act is designed to protect you and ensure that your legal rights under the British Columbia Act are respected. The Residential Rental Act does not apply to the following apartments: If you have a disturbance in your right to quiet enjoyment, challenge the issue through your apartment rental agency. The arbitrator may award you a reduced rent. If you wish to terminate your tenancy due to serious circumstances, you may be able to terminate your lease due to a breach of an essential provision. Tenants must ensure that the unit is ready for the final condition inspection, i.e. they must remove all items, clean the unit and repair damage. Alternatively, the landlord may ask to withhold some or all of the deposit to cover cleaning or repair costs. Your landlord can legally require a deposit to cover the cost of damage to the unit of ownership. In addition, your landlord may also require a pet deposit if the unit allows pets in the contract. However, your landlord can only request these deposits if you agree to rent the space. You must pay the full deposit within 30 days of moving in. The highest amount your landlord can charge for a deposit is half a month`s rent.
If your landlord charges you more than half a month`s rent for the deposit, you can legally recover the rest or deduct it from your next month`s rent. For the pet deposit, the maximum amount your landlord can charge you is half a month`s rent once you move in with your pet or get a pet. A tenant must move before 13 .m on the last day of the rental (usually the last day of the month.m. A landlord and tenant can agree on a different time or date – as long as it is in writing and signed by both parties. There can be many things to consider when moving a rental unit. Make sure you don`t overlook any of your legal rights and obligations when it comes to properly terminating your rental. The Residential Tenancies Act (LRA) does not recognize emails, text messages and social media as acceptable methods of service. This means that if an official RTB (Residential Tenancy Branch) form is to be delivered or if the RTA requires something to be done “in writing”, it is always safer to rely on paper documents rather than emails, text messages and social media. .