What do I need to rent?

jme2010

Hey everybody...

I'd be looking at moving over to Toronto in July with my partner.

Can somebody tell me what we would need to sign a lease? How different is the rental market in Canada compared to here with regards to tenant rights etc?

I have a concern that they would want a letter of employment in order to rent, but how could one get a job that fast and without an address?

Surely we'd need a home address to set up a bank account and such?

Any advice would be great.

circular flexing

jme2010 wrote: »

Hey everybody...

I'd be looking at moving over to Toronto in July with my partner.

Can somebody tell me what we would need to sign a lease? How different is the rental market in Canada compared to here with regards to tenant rights etc?

I have a concern that they would want a letter of employment in order to rent, but how could one get a job that fast and without an address?

Surely we'd need a home address to set up a bank account and such?

Any advice would be great.

You need to give an address when setting up a bank account but it can be a hotel or a temporary address. (they don't have the same level of validation). When you move, it can usually be changed online.

For renting, I would recommend getting a credit report from ICB before you leave. Obviously having a job will help.

You'll probably stay somewhere short term first (like AirBnb) and then find somewhere more permanent. Be aware that most leases start on the 1st of the month (sometimes 15th but usually 1st).

Tenant rights vary from province to province. I'm not familiar with Ontario.

jme2010

Thanks for the info....any more tid-bits you can think of?

irishman86

jme2010 wrote: »

Hey everybody...

I'd be looking at moving over to Toronto in July with my partner.

Can somebody tell me what we would need to sign a lease? How different is the rental market in Canada compared to here with regards to tenant rights etc?

I have a concern that they would want a letter of employment in order to rent, but how could one get a job that fast and without an address?

Surely we'd need a home address to set up a bank account and such?

Any advice would be great.

If you have money in your Irish account print of a statement. I needed to do that to prove i could afford it as l didnt have a job at the time
For a bank account they usually use the banks address which you will update after getting a place to live. The same with the tax number
I found Canada super easy tbh to get everything in order

circular flexing

jme2010 wrote: »

Thanks for the info....any more tid-bits you can think of?

Not really. Just be aware of your rights and obligations as a tenant. I had some potential landlords ask me for extra deposit as I was new in Canada but I refused as it's illegal.

jme2010

Help.....

So I reached out to a realtor and asked him what we would need to rent.

He basically wants a letter of employment and a Canadian Credit report.

How the feck can we sort the credit report out? We'd only be 'off the boat' so to speak

circular flexing

Don't bother with a realtor. Just look on Craigslist or Kijiji or walk around the are you want to rent in.

jme2010

What will I need to pay upfront? And what are they legally allowed to ask for?

First + Last month rent + deposit?

irishman86

jme2010 wrote: »

What will I need to pay upfront? And what are they legally allowed to ask for?

First + Last month rent + deposit?

First and Last i paid

jme2010

irishman86 wrote: »

First and Last i paid

Can you tell me about how the whole process went for you?

Did you stay in temp accommodation for a while? What documents etc did you need to show?

irishman86

jme2010 wrote: »

Can you tell me about how the whole process went for you?

Did you stay in temp accommodation for a while? What documents etc did you need to show?

Stayed in hostel at start for a month till i found a place i liked. Got a job after two days so was fine on that but they said i wasnt long enough employed so they needed proof of finance.
I had only two weeks wages in my account so i got a print out of my irish account showing i had 12k in showing i had no problem to cover the rent.
A friend of mine went through the same thing and had 3k in there irish account and it was fine
You will need to show you are legal in the country so all the certs
I found Canada was simple as everything was done very quickly

jme2010

irishman86 wrote: »

Stayed in hostel at start for a month till i found a place i liked. Got a job after two days so was fine on that but they said i wasnt long enough employed so they needed proof of finance.
I had only two weeks wages in my account so i got a print out of my irish account showing i had 12k in showing i had no problem to cover the rent.
A friend of mine went through the same thing and had 3k in there irish account and it was fine
You will need to show you are legal in the country so all the certs
I found Canada was simple as everything was done very quickly

Thats amazing. Great to hear. Was that long ago? And what type of property did you end up renting? We want a nice Condo with all the amenities up to 2000 CAD per month

irishman86

jme2010 wrote: »

Thats amazing. Great to hear. Was that long ago? And what type of property did you end up renting? We want a nice Condo with all the amenities up to 2000 CAD per month

It was three years ago buddy i plan on returning once ive finished my masters, its a great city
I rented a three bed condo on bloor and church for 1500. My friends were on yonge and college in a 2 bed apartment paying 1500 (It had everything youd need) its where i will look when i go over again

Doylers

From a realtor in Canada......... probably want my blood type too! Sufficed to say I will not be handing over bank statements or 4 months deposit no matter how tough it is.

Supporting Documents for People who are new to Toronto
These are the supporting documents that are required before submitting an offer to lease. If you are new to Canada you will have to provide the following:

1) Visas
2) Picture ID (license or passport)
3) An introductory or cover letter describing who you are, why are you coming to Canada, what you like about the apartment and why you’d be a great tenant. This is just a suggestion, it’s not mandatory but a short couple of paragraphs = about what you’re like and how you live can be a huge plus. Plus a great picture of yourselves.

4) A letter of Employment from your employer’s stating your monthly income.
5) References letters from past landlords, employers, these go a long way.
6) Landlords want proof that you can pay the rent. You will need to give bank statements showing you balance/ total savings. Give this when you put in an offer.

7) A Rental Application. (don’t fill in Social Insurance number) SEE ATTACHMENT
8) A full credit report with score from Equifax or the equivalent in your country. We need not only the score put a full report. Give this when you put in an offer

9) If you don’t have work when you arrive in Toronto you may need a guarantor (someone that lives in Canada that can sign the lease and take responsibility for unpaid rent/ damage).
Also, I lot of people from abroad may offer a larger rent deposit (4-6 months rent).

When you put in an offer to lease and it gets accepted by the landlord, then you have 24hrs to give the listing brokerage the deposit cheque. It is really important to transfer your money into a Canadian bank account right away so that you can access your funds when needed. The deposit needs to be in the form of a certified cheque/ bank draft/ money order.

Going through a real estate agent is a lot safer than finding an apartment on your own. When you give the rent deposit it doesn’t go directly to the landlord, it goes into a trust account at the listing brokerage’s office. The money is secured there until you get the keys and move into your apartment. There have been many people who have been scammed out of their money because they gave it directly to a “landlord”.

All of this has to be complete before making an offer on a lease property so you need to get a head start now and be prepped and ready to go when the perfect listing appears!
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. I look forward to working with you!

circular flexing

Doylers wrote: »

From a realtor in Canada......... probably want my blood type too! Sufficed to say I will not be handing over bank statements or 4 months deposit no matter how tough it is.

Which province was this in?

Doylers

circular flexing wrote: »

Which province was this in?

Ontario

jme2010

If you walked in to the rental office of the condo itself (not the same one as that horrible sounding realtor) would it be an easier process?

Doylers

jme2010 wrote: »

If you walked in to the rental office of the condo itself (not the same one as that horrible sounding realtor) would it be an easier process?

No idea tbh, I guess they will be wary of newcomers as a whole. But maybe walking in with a suit and saying you so and so with a nice white collar job they could be more lax around rules?  I'll report back as I try to find somewhere