Landlord Record Keeping: What Documents to Keep and for How Long

Good record keeping protects landlords from disputes, audits, and legal claims. Here's a systematic approach.

Sustainable Property Management

Record keeping is one of the least glamorous aspects of rental property management — and one of the most important for protection when disputes arise. Establishing systematic records from day one of a tenancy prevents problems at the end.

Lease documents should be retained indefinitely for as long as there is potential liability. The original lease, all addendums and amendments, renewal agreements, and any written correspondence modifying lease terms are all primary documents.

Green Initiatives That Add Value

Rent payment records — amounts received, dates, payment methods — must be maintained for the duration of the tenancy plus the limitation period for civil claims (generally 2 years from the accrual of the claim). Bank statements showing deposits are reliable records.

Maintenance records document what was done, when, by whom, and at what cost. These records serve multiple purposes: property tax deduction support, dispute defence when tenants claim repairs weren't made, and capital improvement history.

Eco-Friendly Practices

Inspection reports with photographs create the chronological record of property condition that supports any dispute about damage. Move-in inspection, periodic inspections, and move-out inspection reports with date-stamped photographs are invaluable if a deposit dispute arises.

Communications with tenants — notices served, written responses to maintenance requests, letters, emails — should be retained for the tenancy term plus the limitation period. Written communications are evidence; verbal ones are not.

LTB submissions and decisions should be retained permanently. A judgment obtained from or against a former tenant may affect future enforcement or credit-related matters.

Devon Moore, Operations Lead Co-Founder & Operations Lead — D&D Property Management

Devon Moore is the co-founder and Operations Lead at D&D Property Management, managing rental properties across Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph and Waterloo Region.