Tenant Management Essentials
Tenant screening is one of the most important activities a landlord performs, yet it's the step where many landlords make decisions based on instinct rather than information. Systematic screening reduces the risk of accepting a tenant who will cause problems — and in Ontario's landlord-tenant system, a bad tenancy is costly and time-consuming to resolve.
A credit check provides financial history — whether the applicant pays their bills reliably, whether they have collections or judgements outstanding, and their overall credit profile. In Ontario, you need written consent from the applicant to run a credit check. This is standard practice and any legitimate rental applicant will consent.
Screening and Placement
Employment verification confirms that the applicant has income sufficient to cover rent reliably. The standard guidance is that rent should not exceed 30% of gross income. An applicant reporting $4,000 gross monthly income applying for a $2,000 rental should trigger further verification. Request an employment letter and recent pay stubs.
Previous landlord references are invaluable and underutilized. Call previous landlords — not just the most recent, but the one before — and ask specific questions: Did the tenant pay rent on time? Did they provide proper notice when vacating? Would you rent to them again? Current landlords are sometimes reluctant to give negative references to get a difficult tenant out — the previous landlord is more candid.
Retaining Quality Tenants
Human Rights Code compliance is a critical constraint on tenant screening in Ontario. You cannot discriminate on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, family status, disability, or receipt of public assistance. Rejection must be based on financial qualification and rental history, not protected characteristics.
D&D Property Management conducts rigorous, legally compliant tenant screening for all properties in our management portfolio. Our screening process is designed to identify qualified, reliable tenants while scrupulously avoiding discrimination.