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Renting in New Brunswick

Governing or Regulatory Body

The Office of the Rentalsman

Name of ACT / Regulations

The Residential Tenancies Act

Types of Housing/Living Arrangements Covered by the Provincial Legislation

All residential rental properties. Includes lots in mobile home parks.

Exclusions: co-op housing, public housing, rooming houses, boarding houses and vacation homes.

Types of Leases

Leases can be week-to-week, month-to-month, year-to-year or fixed term.

Is a signed lease required?

Yes. Both a Standard Form Lease and lease for a lot in a mobile home park are set out in the provincial legislation. If no lease is used, then the applicable Standard Form of Lease terms will apply, and the tenancy is considered month-to-month. The Standard Form of Lease is available online at the Service New Brunswick site.

Is a signed move in/move out checklist required?

No. The Rentalsman provides an ingoing inspection report form to assist both parties, but completing it is not mandatory.

Deposits

Collecting the last month’s rent is not allowed, however a security deposit up to the equivalent of one month’s rent is allowed. If collected, the deposit must be paid to the Office of the Rentalsman. The Rentalsman holds security deposits collected by landlords in the province and ensures their return, if applicable. Landlords have 7 days after the tenant moves out to make a claim to the Rentalsman to access security deposit funds for damage, cleaning or rent owing. If no claim is made, the money is returned to the tenant from the Office of the Rentalsman.

Key Money

Requiring key money is illegal.

Post-dated Cheques

Landlords may request post-dated cheques if it is stipulated in the Standard Form of Lease.

Renewal of a Lease Term

If a fixed-term lease has expired and parties haven't renegotiated and the landlord accepts the rent, the lease automatically becomes a month-to-month tenancy. For a periodic lease (year-to-year, month-to-month or week-to-week), the tenancy is automatically renewed for the same term unless proper notice of termination is served.

Terminating a Lease: Notice and Timing

In New Brunswick, the end of a fixed term is a valid reason to terminate the tenancy, which is not the case in most other provinces and territories. No notice is required to terminate a lease if it ends on a specific date; a lease for a fixed term ends automatically at the end of the term. To end a month-to-month tenancy, one month notice is required; in a year-to-year, 3 month's notice prior to the anniversary date is required. To terminate a long-term tenancy (5 or more years), the tenant must serve one month’s notice. For the Landlord 3 months’ notice is required and a reason is needed for the tenancy to be terminated. Reasons include but are not limited to: a family member moving in, a major renovation, the building changes to commercial use or recreational use. A landlord may also terminate for "cause" which would include such items as:

rental arrears
conduct concerns
damage to the property
safety matters

Assignments and Sublets

In New Brunswick a sublet, or a situation in which the original tenant will be returning to the premises, is considered a partial assignments. Whether the assignment is partial or for the remaining term of the lease, the lease agreement can provide that the tenant may assign, may not assign, or may assign only with the consent of the landlord. The consent cannot be unreasonably withheld. If there is no lease then the province’s Standard Form of Lease applies and the tenant may assign.

Rent Increases: Notice and Timing

There are no rent controls in New Brunswick. In a month-to-month lease, 2 month's notice is required to allow the tenant to be able to give a month's notice to terminate the tenancy. In a year-to-year lease, 3 months’ notice is required and the tenant may elect to terminate the tenancy by serving at lease one month’s notice prior to the day the rent increase is to take effect. If a fixed term tenancy using the lease prescribed by the province indicates a check mark in the box to allow for a rent increase during the year, the landlord may do so with 3 month's notice. If not, then the full year must pass before an increase is allowed.

Late Rent Payments

Rent is considered late the day after it is due. The landlord can, at that point, issue a 20 day Notice to Vacate the premises. If the tenant pays within the next 7 days the notice is cancelled. A landlord can also wait 10 days or more and then issue a 10 day Notice to Vacate. Failure to pay or leave will enable the landlord to request an Eviction Order. If the tenant fails to pay rent a second time, the landlord may issue a Final Notice to Vacate, and follow with an eviction request regardless of whether rent is paid. In the case of a mobile home park, the tenant can be late with rent 3 times before a Final Notice to Vacate can issue.

Evictions

Landlords may request an Eviction Order from the Office of the Rentalsman for the following reasons:

if a tenant fails to leave on the date set in a Notice to Vacate issued by the landlord for non-payment of rent,
if a tenant fails to leave on the date set in a Notice to Quit issued by a Rentalsman for breach of lease,
if a tenant fails to leave at the end of a term lease or on the date given by one of the parties in a proper Notice to Terminate served in a periodic tenancy.

New Brunswick's eviction process usually takes 3 to 6 days to complete.

Fine Points

Permitting Landlord Entry to the Premises (Times and Reasons)

Landlords have full emergency access rights to enter the rental premises, but they must give 24 hours notice for inspection and 7 days for repairs. If a tenant is in the last month of the tenancy and if the lease provides, a landlord can enter the premises to show the property between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on any day except Sundays and holidays.

May the tenant withhold rent for repairs?

No. If the tenant faces repair problems they may seek help from the Rentalsman. Tenants must give 7 days notice to the landlord about repair problems and landlords must provide a remedy to the problem or, upon application by the tenant, the Rentalsman can take the rent to ensure the repair is completed.

Changing Locks

Not allowed without mutual consent of both parties or permission from the Office of the Rentalsman.

Pets and Smoking

May a landlord refuse to rent to a tenant who has pets or smokes?

A landlord and a tenant may agree to any addition to the Standard Form of Lease that does not alter any right or duty as stated in this Act or the Standard Form of Lease. If smoking and pets are allowed in the tenancy agreement, or the agreement does not address these issues, then they are permitted in the rental unit.

If a no pets and no smoking clause is written into the Standard Form of Lease and the landlord discovers that the tenant has a pet and/or smokes in the rental unit, is this grounds for the landlord to evict the tenant?

Yes, no pet/no smoking policies can be enforceable if spelled out in the Standard Form of Lease. Landlords and tenants can agree to terms such as "no pets and no smoking" in the lease. If a tenant breaches the rental agreement by having a pet or smoking in the rental premises, these breaches would be dealt with on a case by case basis by the Rentalsman and could result in an eviction. Alternatively, if the tenant remains a damage claim at the end of the tenancy may result whereby the landlord acts to recover the cost of re-painting the premises.

Contact Information For general information about renting in New Brunswick contact:

Department of Justice
Office of the Rentalsman
Kings Place
Room: 420, Floor: 4
440 King Street
Fredericton, NB
E3B 5H8
General Info: 506-453-2557
Reception: 506-453-2557
Fax: 506-457-7289
http://www.gnb.ca/0062/Rentalsman/index-e.asp

For a listing of Rentalsman offices, see:
http://www.gnb.ca/0062/Rentalsman/index-e.asp

Renting in New Brunswick

Fine Points

Contact Information For general information about renting in New Brunswick contact:

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