Renting a home in Canada

What landlords ask for

• Landlords can ask for references – for example from a past landlord or your employer – check your credit history and ask for proof of income. Source
• Tip No Canadian job, references or credit history yet? Free newcomer settlement services can advise you; your employer's offer letter helps too.

Deposit rules

• In some provinces a landlord may ask for the first and last months' rent, or a security deposit, when you sign the lease. Source
• Ontario: the standard lease cannot override the law – extra terms requiring damage or pet deposits are void. Source

Your rights as a tenant

• It is illegal for anyone to pressure you into doing things you don't want to do in exchange for rent. Source
• Disputes go to your province's tenancy board or tribunal – in Ontario, the Landlord and Tenant Board. The other provinces' bodies are linked in the table above. Source

Your first weeks

Signing a long-term lease for a home you haven't seen is risky. Plan somewhere to stay while you view homes in person.

• You may need temporary housing when you arrive while you find a place you like – short-term or interim rentals are one option. Source
• Tip Ask your health authority or hospital whether it helps with relocation or temporary housing.

What rent costs

Official statistics only. Your city can be far above or below the average.

Avoid rental scams

Rental scams work best on people who can't view a home in person – for example because they are still abroad.

Checklist before you pay anything

1. Never pay a deposit, rent or “key fee” for a home that you, or someone you trust, have not viewed in person – and not before you have a signed contract.

   Advice from Report Fraud (UK police) · Scamwatch (Australia) · Verbraucherzentrale (Germany) · Make it in Germany

2. The “landlord” is abroad and can't show you the home, but will send the keys by post or courier once you transfer money. This is the classic scam.

   Advice from German police crime prevention · Verbraucherzentrale (Germany) · Scamwatch (Australia) · US Federal Trade Commission

3. The rent is far below similar homes in the area, or you are pushed to decide and pay quickly.

   Advice from US Federal Trade Commission · Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre · Scamwatch (Australia)

4. You are asked to pay by money transfer service, gift card or cryptocurrency, or into an account abroad. That is like sending cash – it is rarely recovered.

   Advice from US Federal Trade Commission · Scamwatch (Australia) · Report Fraud (UK police)

5. Search the address, the photos and the advertiser's name online. Fraudsters copy photos from real listings, and the same home may appear elsewhere with a different owner.

   Advice from Report Fraud (UK police) · US Federal Trade Commission · Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre · Scamwatch (Australia)

6. Don't send copies of your passport or ID card, or your bank details, to someone you have never met before you have agreed to rent.

   Advice from Verbraucherzentrale (Germany) · US Federal Trade Commission · Scamwatch (Australia)

7. Fees just to view a home are a warning sign. In Germany, charging for a viewing is not permitted.

   Advice from Make it in Germany · German police crime prevention

8. If you paid: call your bank at once, keep every message and the listing, and report it (links on each country page). Hang up on anyone who later offers to “recover” your money for a fee.

   Advice from Report Fraud (UK police) · Scamwatch (Australia)

Where people search

• Kijiji Classifieds, including rentals
• Rentals.ca Apartments and houses to rent

Plain links to the main rental sites. PassPeers has no partnership with them. We don't copy or check their listings – use the scam checklist above for every ad.

Agencies that help you relocate

No relocation agency is listed for Canada yet.

Do you help health professionals relocate to Canada? List your agency.

Other countries