Ontario renters, know the numbers before you pay
Rent increases in Ontario: what your landlord can actually charge.
Most Ontario rentals are rent-controlled, which means increases follow strict rules: a yearly guideline cap, 90 days' written notice, and only one increase per 12 months. Here's how to check whether the number on your notice is lawful.
The guideline: 2.1% for 2026, 1.9% for 2027
Each year the province sets a maximum percentage for rent increases on controlled units. For 2026 it's 2.1%, and for 2027 it's 1.9%. A landlord of a rent-controlled unit generally can't raise your rent by more than the guideline without special Board approval.
RTA s.120
90 days' written notice, on the proper form
A rent increase isn't valid just because your landlord told you about it. It requires at least 90 days' written notice in the Board-approved form (the N1 for rent-controlled units). A text message saying "rent's going up next month" doesn't count.
RTA s.116
Only one increase every 12 months
Your rent can't be raised more than once in any 12-month period, even if each individual increase is under the guideline. If your last increase took effect in March, the next one can't take effect before the following March.
RTA s.119
The post-2018 exemption: it's the building that matters, not your unit
Units in buildings where no part was occupied for residential purposes on or before November 15, 2018 are exempt from rent regulation. The test is building-level: a brand-new unit carved out of an older building is not exempt. And the landlord has to prove the exemption applies. Even exempt units still require 90 days' notice and the 12-month rule; exempt-unit increases use Form N2 instead of N1.
RTA s.6.1
If the increase is invalid, you can get the money back
An increase that breaks any of these rules is not lawful rent, and you can keep paying the old amount. If you already paid, you can apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board on Form T1 for a rebate of everything collected illegally. File within one year of the illegal collection or the Board can't order repayment. (Your last month's rent deposit also earns interest each year at the guideline rate, which you can deduct from rent if unpaid.)
RTA s.135(1), s.135(4) · s.106
Rent clauses are where leases quietly overcharge.
Illegal increase formulas, deposits above the cap, fees dressed up as rent: the free analyzer checks your lease's money terms against the rules above and flags what may conflict with the Act.
General information, not legal advice. Rules summarized from the Residential Tenancies Act (Ontario); individual situations vary. Community legal clinics (legalaid.on.ca) give free advice if you need it.