Off-campus housing

Here are brief descriptions of the types of housing available in Québec.

Room When you rent a room in a private home or boarding house, you share the common areas (kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, living room, etc.) with other tenants or the owners. Generally, all furniture and household appliances are supplied. Renting a room is easy and inexpensive. However, before you rent, make sure you come to an agreement with the owner about the rental terms and conditions, the use of household appliances and the laundry room, whether visitors are allowed, etc.

Apartment (1 ½, 2 ½, 3 ½, 4 ½, etc.) In Québec, apartments are designated by the number of rooms they have. The bathroom is considered half a room.

Furnished, semi-furnished, heating/lighting included A furnished apartment (meublé) includes all furniture, a refrigerator, a stove, and sometimes basic kitchen utensils and dishes.

A semi-furnished apartment (semi-meublé) includes only a refrigerator and stove.

An apartment advertised as chauffé et éclairé means that heat and electricity are included in the rent. Some may only include heat (chauffé). When you rent an apartment with an owner-controlled heating system, the owner is required to keep the temperature at or above 21°C.

Apartment sharing (colocation)

This arrangement involves two or more tenants sharing a larger apartment. It’s a practical way to cut apartment costs (telephone, Internet, heat, etc.). It is very common among Québec students, and you will find many apartment sharing offers on campus bulletin boards.

Subletting (sous-location) A tenant who leaves town for a while but wants to keep his or her apartment will often look for someone to sublet. Usually, people who sublet their apartment leave a lot of their furniture there. Before signing a subletting agreement, make sure that the owner of the building allows subletting.

Spotted a place that seems to meet your needs?

1. Contact the landlord right away to get all of the details (number of bedrooms, utilities included in the rent, what floor it is on, available parking, balcony, laundry facilities, etc.).
2. Get as much information as possible so that you don’t waste your time visiting a place that doesn’t suit you.
3. If it sounds good, make an appointment with the landlord or concierge to go and visit during the day, when the lighting is better. If you are unable to visit the apartment in person, ask about the option of a virtual tour of the property.
4. Be sure to inspect all of the rooms and check whether household appliances work properly if they’re included in the rent.
5. If applicable, check the common areas (laundry room, storage areas, etc.).
6. Many landlords will require a credit report or co-signer. If this is your first time in Canada, you will have no credit and will not be able to provide a credit report. Make sure the landlord will accept a co-signer, or rent without proof of credit, before you commit to renting.
7. Ensure that a rental contract is in place (Lease). We strongly advise you not to move in with a landlord who has not signed a rental agreement beforehand. This contract is essential to ensure that your rights as a tenant are respected, and that you can be sure of the quality of the accommodation. See the Rental agreement (Lease) section for more details.

Once you’ve found the perfect apartment, there’s still one thing to do before moving in: sign the lease.

In Québec, leases generally expire annually on June 30. However, it may be possible to sign a lease any time of year for any duration. Before signing the lease, read the entire document very carefully. It is a binding contract between you and the landlord, and you may be subject to penalties if you want to break it.

Make sure that:

• The lease covers all the terms and conditions you discussed with the owner
• You thoroughly understand which utilities you will pay for and which the owner will pay for
• The unit shown on the lease is the one that you visited and agreed to rent
• You understand your responsibilities if you share an apartment

By law (Act respecting the Régie du logement) you are entitled to receive a copy of the lease within 10 days of signing it.

As a tenant, you must pay the entire month’s rent on the date indicated in the lease—generally the1st of the month. The landlord must also obey certain rules. For example, the landlord can ask only for the first month’s rent to be paid in advance, and cannot require you to provide post-dated cheques or a financial deposit.

By signing a lease, the landlord promises to deliver functional accommodations that are clean and in good condition. As a tenant, you promise to keep it that way. If the accommodations you are renting have defects (e.g., certain things are broken), make sure they are indicated in the lease.

As the end of the lease draws near, you have to decide whether you want to stay where you are or move. By law, the landlord must notify you in advance of any upcoming changes to the lease, generally three to six months before the end of the lease.

When you receive the notice of changes to the lease, you have one month to inform the landlord in writing whether you accept the changes, reject the changes but wish to stay anyway, or intend to move when the lease ends.

If you do not respond to the landlord’s notice, the changes are deemed to be accepted and the lease is automatically renewed.

If you plan to leave when your lease ends, you must notify the landlord ahead of time in writing. For a one-year lease, notice must be given between three and six months before the lease ends, otherwise the lease will renew automatically with the same terms and conditions. For shorter leases, the advance notification period may be shorter.

Tribunal administratif du logement (Housing Board, rights and obligations)
1-800-683-2245
www.tal.gouv.qc.ca

Le Bail (advice and support)
418-523-6177
www.lebail.qc.ca

In Québec, electricity is provided by Hydro-Québec. If the cost of electricity is not included in the cost of your rental housing, you need to contact Hydro-Québec to activate service.

Hydro-Québec 1-888-385-7252 www.hydroquebec.com

Tap water from the municipal water system is potable and free, and service is automatic, so you do not need to buy bottled water or contact a water utility.