Rent isn't a handshake deal.

Deposits

A landlord can require a security deposit of no more than one-half of one month's rent. A separate pet damage deposit of up to one-half month's rent is allowed, but only for pet-related damage. No other up-front payment is permitted in BC. 'Last month's rent' is not a valid charge, even if a lease says otherwise. Combined total: no more than one month's rent up front.

The move-in condition inspection

A move-in inspection is mandatory. Both landlord and tenant must be present, and the condition of every room is documented on Form RTB-27. A landlord who fails to offer the inspection loses the right to make claims against the security deposit for damage later. A tenant who fails to show up for a properly scheduled inspection loses their own claim to the condition-report finding.

Fixed-term vs month-to-month

A fixed-term lease (e.g. 12 months) automatically becomes a month-to-month tenancy at the end of the term, on exactly the same terms. The landlord cannot force move-out at term end unless a strictly-limited vacate clause applies. Since 2017, vacate clauses are only valid in narrow cases, principally where a landlord or close family member intends to occupy the unit.

What landlords can and can't ask

'I don't rent to families with kids' and 'I don't accept people on disability assistance' are both illegal, even said casually.

Rent increases

Three rules have to line up. If any one is missing, the increase doesn't stick.

Break any one of these and the tenant keeps paying the old rent. The RTB will back them up.

Entry requires 24 hours' notice

A landlord cannot enter a rental unit except: with the tenant's consent at the time; with 24 hours' and no more than 30 days' written notice, stating the purpose, with an entry time between 8am and 9pm; with an RTB order; in a genuine emergency; or if the tenant has abandoned the unit. Repeated entry without proper notice is a material breach and grounds for a tenant's dispute application.

Repairs, emergency vs non-emergency

A landlord must keep the property in a state of repair that complies with health, safety, and housing standards. Emergency repairs (burst pipes, no heat in winter, electrical hazard, locked out) must be handled as soon as reasonably possible. Non-emergency repairs must be addressed within a reasonable time. A tenant cannot withhold rent over unaddressed repairs. The correct remedy is an RTB application for an order for repairs, rent abatement, or compensation.

Quiet enjoyment and other tenants

Every tenant is entitled to quiet enjoyment of the rental unit: freedom from unreasonable disturbance, including from other tenants in the building. When one tenant's conduct unreasonably disturbs another, it is the landlord's obligation to intervene. Refusing to act is itself a breach of the first tenant's right to quiet enjoyment.

Roommates vs co-tenants: the biggest confusion

If both adults signed the tenancy agreement, they are co-tenants: each has the full protection of the Residential Tenancy Act. If only one signed and the other is an occupant, the occupant has no RTA relationship with the landlord, only with the tenant whose name is on the agreement. A tenant and an unnamed roommate are in a private contract that the RTA does not govern. This matters a lot at the point of disputes about rent share, eviction, or damage.

Tenant giving notice

A tenant can end a month-to-month tenancy with one full rental month's written notice, ending on the last day of a rental period. If rent is paid on the first, notice given at any time in March means the tenancy ends April 30. A tenant cannot end a fixed-term tenancy early without the landlord's agreement. Breaking a fixed-term can mean liability for rent until the unit is re-rented or the term ends, whichever is first.

Four ways a landlord can end a tenancy

A landlord can only end a tenancy in four specific ways. Each one has its own form and timeline:

• 110 Day Notice for Unpaid Rent (Form RTB-30): tenant has 5 days to pay in full or dispute. Miss both and the order of possession follows automatically.
• 21 Month Notice for Cause (Form RTB-33): for repeated late rent, material breach, illegal activity, endangering others, and similar causes. Tenant has 10 days to dispute.
• 32 Month Notice for Landlord's Use (Form RTB-32): landlord, close family member, or a buyer intends to occupy. Requires one month's rent compensation. Since Bill 14 (2024), must be filed through a mandatory portal with documented genuine intent. Penalty for bad faith: 12 months' rent.
• 44 Month Notice for Demolition or Major Renovation (Form RTB-29): requires actual permits and an RTB ruling that the work requires vacancy.

The deposit, at the end

Within 15 days of the later of tenancy end and receipt of the tenant's forwarding address in writing, the landlord must either return the security deposit and pet damage deposit in full, OR apply to the RTB to keep some or all of it. A landlord who does neither owes the tenant double the deposit. The landlord cannot keep any portion without the tenant's written consent or an RTB order. Normal wear and tear (nail holes, minor scuffing, fading) is not deductible.

When a tenant dies

Death does not end the tenancy on its own. It transfers to the deceased's estate. The executor (named in a will), or an administrator (appointed under the Wills, Estates and Succession Act if there is no will), takes over: rent comes out of estate assets, and the standard tenant-side notice rules apply. A month-to-month tenancy needs one month's written notice from the estate; a fixed-term tenancy runs to its end date unless the landlord agrees otherwise.

The deceased's belongings are protected. Landlords cannot simply discard them. Part 5 of the Residential Tenancy Regulation (revised April 2025) requires written inventory and safe storage for at least 30 days before disposal, with stricter rules for items of personal value like medical equipment or framed photographs. Items collectively worth under $1,000 may be disposed of sooner. Sale proceeds first cover removal, storage, and unpaid rent; anything left over goes to the BC Unclaimed Property Society.

Filing an application

When you want the RTB to settle a tenancy argument, you file a dispute-resolution application online through the RTB portal. The fee is $100, waivable for low-income applicants. The two most critical deadlines: 5 days to dispute a 10 Day Notice for Unpaid Rent, and 10 days to dispute most other landlord notices. Miss the deadline and the landlord's notice takes effect automatically, with no hearing.

Serving evidence

Both parties must exchange evidence before the hearing, and file a copy with the RTB. Typical deadlines: 14 days before the hearing for evidence served by the applicant, 7 days for evidence from the respondent. Late evidence can be excluded. What counts: written communications, dated photos, receipts, condition inspection reports, witness statements. What doesn't: verbal agreements without corroboration, hearsay without documents.

The hearing itself

Almost all hearings are conducted by phone (increasingly, video). The arbitrator is an RTB employee, not a judge. The rules of evidence are informal. Hearsay is admissible but carries less weight. The arbitrator will ask the applicant to present their case, then the respondent, then allow rebuttal. Written records are the single strongest evidence. Unrepresented parties are the norm; there is no requirement for a lawyer.

What arbitrators actually care about

Documentation. Written, dated communications. Photos with visible timestamps. Receipts. The condition inspection report (RTB-27). RTB forms served correctly. Whoever has the better paper trail tends to win, regardless of which side they are on.

After the decision

RTB decisions are final and binding. Orders of possession are enforced through the BC Supreme Court (Writ of Possession, served by court bailiff). Monetary orders are enforced through BC Small Claims Court up to $35,000, or BC Supreme Court above that. Appeals are available only on narrow judicial-review grounds; the BC Supreme Court will not re-hear the facts. A party who missed a hearing due to circumstances beyond their control can apply for a review under section 79, but must show they would have had a different outcome.

'Tenants always win at RTB' gets the same check as 'landlords can enter any time.' Every myth here has a shareable page you can forward.

Common tenant myths

Common landlord myths

Common to both sides