There's a For Sale sign on your rental. You still live here.

In 30 seconds, here's what's true

• A sale is not a reason to evict you, because in Ontario a change of owner does not end your tenancy and does not force you to move out.
• The buyer becomes your new landlord and takes over your existing agreement. Your rent, your lease term, and your rights all stay the same.
• The new owner cannot raise your rent just because they bought the place. The normal rent rules and the yearly guideline still apply.
• The only way a sale can end your tenancy: the buyer, their close family, or a caregiver wants to move in, and the building has 3 units or fewer. That needs a Form N12.
• To show the unit to buyers, the landlord must give you written notice at least 24 hours ahead, and can only enter between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

The steps your landlord must follow

1. 1

   Confirm the sale changes nothing about your lease

   When the property sells, your tenancy comes with it, so the buyer steps into the old landlord's shoes and is bound by your existing rental agreement. Your rent stays the same, your lease runs to the end, and you keep every right you had before. You don't sign a new lease, and you don't owe a new deposit.

2. 2

   Know the rules for showings

   The landlord can show your unit to people thinking about buying it, but not whenever they feel like it. They have to give you written notice at least 24 hours before, and the notice has to say the day and a time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. A text or email doesn't count as proper notice. You don't have to leave during a showing, and you don't have to tidy up or stage the place.

3. 3

   Watch for an N12, and only an N12

   A sale can lead to you moving in one case: the buyer, a close family member, or a caregiver genuinely plans to live in your unit, and the building has three units or fewer. If so, the landlord gives you a Form N12 with at least 60 days notice, ending on the last day of a rental period. Any other reason tied to the sale is not valid.

4. 4

   Check that they paid you and filled it out right

   With a proper N12 for a buyer moving in, you're owed one month's rent as compensation, and it has to reach you by the termination date on the notice. If they don't pay, the Board can't evict you. Read the form for the buyer's name and the reason, and confirm the building really has three units or fewer, because more than three means the N12 doesn't apply.

5. 5

   You leave only if the Board orders it

   An N12 is a notice, not an eviction. If you don't agree or don't move, the landlord has to apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board on a Form L2 and win a hearing. If the buyer never moves in, or moves out fast and re-lists the place, that points to bad faith. You can file a T5 within a year and claim up to 12 months of rent.

What to do next

• Don't move out just because the place is listed or sold. A sale is not an eviction.
• Keep paying your rent to whoever the landlord is, before and after the sale.
• Get the new owner's name and contact in writing once the sale closes.
• For any showing, expect written notice at least 24 hours ahead, for a time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.
• If you get a Form N12, check the building has 3 units or fewer, or it does not apply to you.
• Confirm the N12 gives at least 60 days and ends on the last day of a rental period.
• Make sure you get one month's rent as compensation by the termination date on the N12.
• Get free help fast: Steps to Justice (stepstojustice.ca), a community legal clinic through Legal Aid Ontario (1-800-668-8258), or Tenant Duty Counsel at your hearing.

Common myths