Did you know that a rental unit can only be reclaimed by the landlord for four specific reasons?
One of the exceptions to maintaining occupancy is the reclamation of a rental unit by the landlord of the building. However, for a landlord to reclaim a rental unit, specific conditions must be met. Firstly, a landlord can reclaim one of their rental units to:
Reside in it themselves;
House their parents or children;
House a relative or ally for whom they are the main moral or financial support;
House a former spouse for whom they remain the main support following a legal separation, divorce, or dissolution of a civil union.
To reclaim a rental unit, the landlord must have notified their tenant with a written notice sent at least 6 months before the end of the lease.
For example, for a 12-month lease ending on June 30, a landlord must have notified their tenant of their intention no later than December 31. The tenant in question then has one month to respond to the landlord's notice and announce that they will vacate the unit at the end of the lease.
If the tenant does not respond within the specified time frame, they are deemed to have refused to vacate the unit at the end of the lease. The landlord then has one month, following the negative response or failure to respond from their tenant, to submit an application to the Rental Board to obtain authorization to reclaim their unit.
If the tenant agrees to vacate the unit or if the Rental Board authorizes the unit's reclamation by decision, then the landlord can reclaim their unit upon the expiration of the current lease.
It is worth noting that there are certain exceptions to the reclamation of a rental unit, particularly if the tenant is over 70 years old, if the building is owned by more than three co-owners, or if the building belongs to a corporation rather than an individual.