The Keeping People Housed Act, 2026 amends the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 to remove a key exemption from rent control, to cap what a new tenant may be charged based on the last lawful rent, to create a province‑wide rent registry maintained by the Landlord and Tenant Board and to strengthen tenant protections where tenancies are terminated for repairs or renovations. The Bill also adds a Rental Task Force to study above‑guideline increases and amends municipal statutes (including the City of Toronto Act) to block conversions or demolitions that would eliminate six or more rental units unless replacement and tenant‑return protections are provided or the units are already above mid‑range rents.
For professionals: the Bill reallocates risk from tenants toward landlords, creates new regular reporting duties and penalties, embeds a public data feed on rents, and inserts municipal gatekeeping into the lifecycle of rental stock. That combination affects compliance programs, property dispositions, renovation strategies and municipal planning approvals.
At a Glance
What It Does
The Bill repeals the statutory exemption that allowed some units to escape Part VII (rent regulation), requires termination notices for demolition/conversion/repairs to include municipal approvals and an engineer’s statement, compels landlords to offer temporary comparable housing or statutory compensation during renovations, establishes a public rent registry with mandatory landlord filings and creates municipal limits on demolitions/conversions that would remove six or more rental units.
Who It Affects
All Ontario landlords and tenants governed by the Residential Tenancies Act—especially owners of previously exempt units and small landlords—municipal planning and approvals authorities, developers proposing conversions/demolitions, property managers required to file rent statements, and the Landlord and Tenant Board which must operate the registry and handle new compliance-driven applications.
Why It Matters
The Bill narrows the ability to reset rents at market for many units, introduces a searchable official record of rents and landlord contacts, raises the bar for demolition/conversion of multi‑unit rental properties, and creates administrative penalties and processing holds that will change how landlords, tenants and municipalities approach renovations, evictions and redevelopment.
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What This Bill Actually Does
The Act first removes the exemption that let certain units escape rent control, bringing those units back under the rent rules in Part VII. Practically, that means landlords can no longer rely on that carve‑out to set initial rents unconstrained by the previous lawful charge; tenants gain the ability to ask the Board to fix the lawful rent and obtain rebates where overcharging is found.
When a landlord serves a termination notice under section 50 for demolition, conversion or extensive repairs, the notice must now include copies of the municipal approvals that authorize the work and an engineer’s report confirming vacant possession is necessary. If the termination is for repairs or renovations, the landlord must either offer the tenant another acceptable rental unit for the duration of the work or provide statutory compensation intended to cover the tenant’s cost of comparable housing.
The Act specifies parameters for that compensation and sets minimums, so temporary relocations now impose a concrete cost and logistical obligation on landlords.The Bill rewrites the legal rule that determines the lawful rent for the first rental period under a new tenancy: in most cases the lawful rent is tied to what was last lawfully charged or what ought to have been charged to the prior occupant, with special rules to account for units vacant for more than 12 months. Tenants (except certain new tenants described in the Act) can apply to the Board to have the maximum lawful rent determined; if the Board finds the landlord charged more than permitted it must order a rebate of excess payments.A new Part XI.1 creates a rent registry the Landlord and Tenant Board must maintain.
Landlords must file a standardized statement within 30 days of entering into a lease and must notify the Board within 30 days of any rent change. The registry will publish municipal addresses, rent amounts and landlord contact information (excluding addresses), allow tenants and recent former tenants to request unit‑specific records, and permit limited disclosure to tax authorities.
The Board gets powers to correct inaccurate filings and to treat false or missing statements as offences subject to new consequences.To inform future policy on above‑guideline increases, the Minister must appoint a Rental Task Force—majority tenants and reflecting housing precarity diversity—to report within six months after appointment on the causes, frequency and options for limiting above‑guideline increases; the Minister must advise the Assembly within 90 days of which recommendations it intends to implement. Finally, amendments to the City of Toronto Act and the Municipal Act prevent municipal approvals for conversions or demolitions that eliminate six or more rental units unless the units are already above mid‑range rents or the applicant replaces the units and implements an approved tenant relocation and return plan.
The Five Things You Need to Know
The Bill repeals section 6.1 of the Residential Tenancies Act, removing a statutory exemption and bringing those units back under rent regulation.
When terminating a tenancy for demolition/conversion/repairs, landlords must include municipal approvals and an engineer’s report with the notice to show vacant possession is necessary.
For repairs/renovations that require vacant possession, landlords must either offer a tenant an acceptable temporary rental or compensate them; compensation is tied to the cost of a comparable unit subject to statutory caps and floors set in the Act.
The Bill creates a mandatory rent registry: landlords must file a Board‑approved statement within 30 days of a new lease and within 30 days of any rent change; certain registry fields are made public and the Board may disclose registry data to tax authorities.
Municipal approvals cannot be granted for conversions/demolitions that would remove six or more rental units unless the units already command rents above mid‑range or the applicant replaces the units (same number/size/type) and implements an approved tenant relocation and return plan.
Section-by-Section Breakdown
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Reinstating rent regulation for previously exempt units
These amendments repeal section 6.1 and adjust cross‑references so that Part VII applies to units that had been excluded. The practical effect is that previously exempt units are now subject to the Act’s rent rules, tenant application rights and Board oversight. Landlords who relied on the exemption to set initial rents will now face limits tied to prior lawful rents and new application and rebate remedies for tenants.
Stricter documentation with termination notices
The Bill requires that any termination notice for demolition, conversion or repairs include copies of all municipal approvals authorizing the work and an engineer’s statement confirming vacant possession is necessary for the scope of work. This shifts part of the evidentiary burden onto landlords at the front end and gives tenants concrete documents to challenge the basis for vacant‑possession evictions.
Temporary relocation: offer or statutory compensation
The new section mandates that landlords who terminate a tenancy for repairs or renovations must either provide another rental unit acceptable to the tenant for the work period or pay compensation designed to cover the tenant’s costs for comparable accommodation. The statutory formula sets a maximum tied to both a percentage over the tenant’s former rent and a percentage over area median market rent, and the landlord must ensure the tenant receives at least what they paid before—creating a predictable financial obligation for temporary relocations.
How lawful rent for a new tenancy is calculated and Board remedies
The Act replaces section 113 with rules that anchor the lawful rent for a new tenant to the last lawful rent charged (or what ought to have been charged) and, for units vacant more than 12 months, permits accounting for permitted increases or required decreases that would have applied. It expands tenant access to the Board to determine the maximum lawful rent and requires rebates where the Board finds overcharging—turning rent‑setting disputes into adjudicable monetary remedies.
Provincial rent registry: filings, public data, and disclosure powers
The Board must establish a registry and landlords must file a prescribed statement within 30 days of entering a lease and update it within 30 days of any rent change. The registry will publish municipal addresses, rents and landlord contact information (excluding physical addresses) online, allow tenants and recent former tenants to request unit records, and permit verification and correction by the Board. The Act also permits disclosure to federal or provincial tax authorities, raising compliance and privacy implications.
Enforcement: filing offences, penalties and procedural holds
The Bill adds failing to file the rent statement and providing false information to the list of prohibited acts and ties non‑compliance to Board procedure: the Board may refuse to file applications, stay proceedings or not issue orders until fines, fees or statements are paid or filed. These procedural levers create enforcement pressure but also mean dispute processes can be paused where filing or payment issues exist.
Rental Task Force to study above‑guideline increases
The Minister must appoint five to ten members—making a reasonable effort to ensure a tenant majority and diverse representation—to investigate the frequency, drivers and potential policy responses to above‑guideline rent increases. The Task Force must consult broadly, publish a report within six months, and the Minister must report back to the Assembly within 90 days on which recommendations the government proposes to implement.
Municipal limits on demolitions and conversions that remove rental units
Both statutes forbid municipal approvals for a conversion or demolition that would remove six or more rental units unless every affected unit already commands rents above mid‑range or the applicant replaces the units with the same number/size/type and implements an approved tenant relocation and return plan. The provisions give municipalities a statutory tool to block large losses of rental stock or to force on‑site or equivalent replacement with tenant protections built into approvals.
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Explore this topic in Codify Search →Who Benefits and Who Bears the Cost
Every bill creates winners and losers. Here's who stands to gain and who bears the cost.
Who Benefits
- Long‑term tenants in previously exempt units — They regain Part VII protections, can challenge new rents at the Board and may receive rebates for unlawful overcharges.
- Tenants displaced for renovations — They gain statutory rights to an acceptable temporary unit or compensation and clearer documentary evidence (approvals and engineering reports) to contest displacement notices.
- Prospective tenants and researchers — Public access to the rent registry gives applicants and analysts unit‑level rent histories and patterns, improving market transparency and due diligence.
- Municipalities and tenant advocacy groups — The new demolition/conversion limits and required relocation plans strengthen municipal leverage to preserve rental stock and protect tenants during redevelopment.
Who Bears the Cost
- Landlords and property managers — They must file standardized statements, update the registry within tight timelines, retain documentation for notices, potentially provide temporary housing or pay compensation, and face penalty exposure for false or missing filings.
- Developers and owners seeking conversion/demolition approvals — Projects that would remove six or more units now require either replacement at similar rents and tenant return rights or must demonstrate rents already exceed mid‑range, increasing project complexity and cost.
- Landlord and Tenant Board — The Board must stand up and operate a registry, vet filings, handle increased applications and corrections, and administer procedural holds, requiring administrative resources and new operational rules.
- Municipal planning departments — They will need to assess and approve relocation plans, monitor replacement‑unit commitments and enforce conditions in complex redevelopment files, increasing processing workload.
Key Issues
The Core Tension
The central dilemma is straightforward: protect tenants and preserve affordable rental stock by constraining rent resets, requiring compensation and blocking large unit losses, but do so in a way that preserves incentives (and finances) for repairs, upgrades and new rental supply; tighten protections too far and you risk discouraging renovation and redevelopment, which can shrink long‑term supply or shift investment out of regulated rental housing.
The Bill packs operational detail into relatively short statutory changes but leaves several key implementation questions open. It does not define how 'mid‑range rents' or 'comparable unit' will be calculated for demolition approvals and compensation respectively, so municipalities and the Board will need regulations or rules to create consistent benchmarks.
The rent registry’s accuracy obligations and the Board’s power to correct entries are useful, but the statute relies on landlords to self‑report and provides only limited audit or verification tools—raising risks of stale or manipulated data unless the Board develops active validation procedures.
The enforcement design is blunt: the Board can refuse to file applications, stay proceedings or withhold orders where fines or required statements are outstanding. That creates strong leverage to compel compliance, but also risks delaying dispute resolution and could be gamed in contentious files.
Similarly, coupling tenancy‑preserving obligations to demolition approvals protects units on paper but may prompt developers to remove units from the rental market earlier (e.g., by converting to non‑regulated forms prior to the Bill’s commencement) or to consolidate ownership structures to avoid reporting obligations. Finally, public disclosure of unit addresses and landlord contact information—balanced against the promise to omit landlord residential addresses—creates privacy and safety considerations that the Board will have to manage carefully while making data usable for tenants and researchers.
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