Skip to main content

Lease renewal

OntarioLandlord provides a dedicated workflow for renewing leases when they approach expiry.

Accessing renewal​

From a lease detail page, go to the Actions tab and click Renew Lease. You can also access renewal from the dashboard when lease expiry alerts appear.

The renewal page is at /leases/:id/renew.

Renewal workflow​

  1. Review current terms — The system shows the current lease terms (rent, dates, tenant info)
  2. Set new terms — Update the rent amount (within guideline), new start/end dates, and any changed terms
  3. Generate renewed OSL — A new Ontario Standard Lease is generated with the updated terms
  4. Send for signing — Use e-signatures to get all parties to sign the renewed lease

N1 notice required for a rent increase​

Raising the rent as part of a renewal does not by itself make the increase enforceable. A rent increase is only legal once you serve the tenant a Form N1 with at least 90 days' written notice (RTA s.116) — the higher amount on the renewed lease is not a substitute for the N1.

If the new rent you set is higher than the current rent, OntarioLandlord shows a warning on the renewal page explaining that an N1 is still required. If your chosen start date is less than 90 days away, the warning also flags that an N1 served today couldn't take effect in time.

After you create a renewal that raises the rent, you're taken directly to the new lease's Notices tab so you can generate the N1 right away.

Renewal badge​

A renewed lease keeps a link back to the lease it replaced. On the new lease's Overview tab, a Renewal badge appears next to the Lease Start Date — click it to jump to the previous lease. This also signals that the tenancy is continuous: under RTA s.119, the 12-month rent-increase clock runs from the original move-in date, not the renewal's start date.

Expiry tracking​

OntarioLandlord tracks lease expiry dates and generates notifications:

  • Dashboard alerts — Expiring leases appear on your dashboard
  • Email notifications — Optional email reminders as expiry approaches
  • In-app notifications — Alerts in the notification center

Month-to-month conversion​

In Ontario, a fixed-term lease automatically converts to a month-to-month tenancy when it expires (unless properly terminated). OntarioLandlord tracks this transition and updates the lease status accordingly.

Plan ahead

Start the renewal process at least 60–90 days before lease expiry to allow time for negotiation, signing, and any required rent increase notices (N1).