Rental Corner: Terminating a Tenancy

There are various reasons for the landlord-owner to terminate a tenancy other than issues caused by the tenants. 

• Sale of the Property. One common reason is due to the sale of the property and there is a subject on the interim agreement that the purchaser will move into the premises upon completion of the sale.
• Taking Back the Property. Another common reason is the landlord-owner wants to take back the suite or house for their own use, or for the use of their immediate family as allowed under the Residential Tenancy Act.

A word of caution is that if the reason for requesting the ex-tenants to vacate the premises is found to be of other reasons, there is a high penalty in place legislated by the Residential Tenancy Act. If that is the case, the ex-tenants can apply for an arbitration hearing, claiming that the landlord-owner terminated their tenancy for reasons different from that, as written on the termination notice. If the arbitrator is inclined to side with the ex-tenants, they could grant the maximum amount of penalty equivalent to 12 months’ rent against the landlord-owner.

Our team of Property Managers always inform landlord-owners in advance of possible consequence before serving the notice of termination.   We have long term clients and return clients that have sold and re-purchased investment units under our management.

If you are interested in our RHOME Property Management services, please do not hesitate to contact us at 604-591-6060.