Before advertising the unit
- Confirm local rental, licensing, safety, insurance, condominium, and municipal requirements.
- Set a defensible rent and document what is included.
- Prepare a lawful advertisement and consistent application criteria.
- Plan how applicant information will be collected, secured, retained, and deleted.
From application to signed lease
Use a province-appropriate lease and required disclosures. Verify identity and references proportionately, obtain consent where a third-party check requires it, and keep the final decision with the landlord.
Before move-in, preserve the signed documents, contact details, payment instructions, condition evidence, keys, and any required deposit records.
Monthly landlord routine
- Reconcile rent against the tenant and lease rather than relying on an inbox notification.
- Record expenses and attach receipts to the correct property.
- Acknowledge and track maintenance requests, actions, costs, and completion.
- Keep communications factual and in a durable record.
- Review outstanding rent, expiring leases, open maintenance, and missing documents.
Prepare for year end all year
Maintain gross-rent and expense detail for each property, preserve supporting evidence, and review current versus capital treatment with the CRA guidance or a tax professional. Form T776 and record retention are federal tax matters even though the tenancy itself is provincially regulated.
Sources
- Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada: Privacy in the landlord and tenant relationship (accessed 2026-07-25)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Completing Form T776, Statement of Real Estate Rentals (accessed 2026-07-25)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Keeping Records (accessed 2026-07-25)
Authored by DwellTrack Editorial Team. Review owner: Editorial review required for legal and tax updates.