Leasing a House under Joint Tenancy
Thursday, Mar 14, 2024
Leasing a house
Leasing (renting) a home in Ontario is a popular option for most people as the cost of homes in Ontario rises. However, if you are planning on renting a house with your best friend as a roommate, you should consider other options rather than having both of your names on the lease. If you do that, you both may have leased a home under a Joint Tenancy. This means if you plan to move out at the conclusion of your lease, both you and your roommate will have to decide to end the lease. If your roommate decides not to move out, you are unable to move out because under Joint Tenancy, you both have to decide to move. To further explain this, we have to explain what Joint tenancy is.
In order for there to be a valid joint tenancy four things have to exist:
- Move in similar times;
- Both named on the lease;
- Both have equal possession (full access except bedrooms); and
- Listed as a joint.
Assuming these four things are true of a lease, you cannot get out of the lease unless the other roommate agrees to end the lease OR the roommate and landlord allow you to assign the lease to someone else. If you and your roommate agree that the lease is assigned, but the landlord does not, then the lease is canceled, which is hard as the other roommate may not agree to that if they do not want to leave.
One way around this is to have separate leases where both you and your roommate lease out a portion of the home such as a room and share the common areas – Kitchen, Bathroom, any portion of the house that is not within your private room. Please be advised that the landlord and the listing agent may not agree to this due to the excess paperwork. The other option is to find shared accommodation because the landlord will have fashioned a lease where you are only renting out a portion of the home.
The moral of the story is if you are renting out a house or a condo with your best friend, this is something you need to be aware of. In my younger days, I decided to live with other people I thought I could get along with, only to have this end up in disaster where we are now no longer talking to each other. Ontario rental laws are very fickle. Thus, before deciding to live together with your best friend, please be aware of the laws surrounding Joint Tenancy. Please be safe.
