Last Updated: August 26 2026
What rights do Ontario tenants have to move back after a landlord starts major renovations?
In Ontario, a landlord may seek vacant possession for extensive repairs or renovations under section 50 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17, but tenants have a right of first refusal: if the work is a true renovation and the rental unit continues to exist in some form, the tenant can usually give notice and move back when the work is done (whereas a demolition that eliminates the unit can end that right) In Divisional Court guidance like Two Clarendon Apartments Limited v. Sinclair, 2019 ONSC 3845, the key is whether the unit will still exist such that reoccupation is possible, not just the magnitude of the construction If you need help assessing whether the proposed work is a renovation or a demolition and what notice to send to protect your return right, Reznik Legal Services can assist by phone at (416) 222-9906.
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Can a Landlord Evict a Tenant When Doing Major Renovations?
A Tenant Has a Right to Return Following Renovation But Not Demolition. The Difference Is That After a Demolition a Unit Suitable for Habitation Fails to Exist.
Note: Please contact Reznik Legal Services by phone at: (416) 222-9906 to discuss any specific questions that you may have.
Understanding Renovation and Demolition Differences As Well As the Relevant Tenant Rights Landlord Duties
The law provides that a tenant holds the right to return to a rental unit following a renovation to the unit previously occupied by the tenant but not following a demolition. Accordingly, this right raises the question as to what extent of work constitutes as a renovation and what extent of construction constitutes as a demolition. The answer to this question provides the answer to whether a right to return is held by the tenant.
The Law
As per section 50 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, Chapter 17, where a a tenant receives notice of an intent to do repairs or renovate from the landlord, the tenant may then provide notice of an intention to return and occupy the unit following the repairs or renovation to the landlord. Specifically, section 50 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 says:
50 (1) A landlord may give notice of termination of a tenancy if the landlord requires possession of the rental unit in order to,
(a) demolish it;
(b) convert it to use for a purpose other than residential premises; or
(c) do repairs or renovations to it that are so extensive that they require a building permit and vacant possession of the rental unit.
(2) The date for termination specified in the notice shall be at least 120 days after the notice is given and shall be the day a period of the tenancy ends or, where the tenancy is for a fixed term, the end of the term.
(3) A notice under clause (1) (c) shall inform the tenant that if he or she wishes to exercise the right of first refusal under section 53 to occupy the premises after the repairs or renovations, he or she must give the landlord notice of that fact in accordance with subsection 53 (2) before vacating the rental unit.
(4) A tenant who receives notice of termination under subsection (1) may, at any time before the date specified in the notice, terminate the tenancy, effective on a specified date earlier than the date set out in the landlord’s notice.
(5) The date for termination specified in the tenant’s notice shall be at least 10 days after the date the tenant’s notice is given.
Upon review of the statutory provisions described above, there is an apparent concern that does arise from time to time being the question as to what constitutes a repair or renovation and what constitutes as a demolition whereas it is often argued that, at a certain point, a repair or renovation becomes so significant as to constitute a demolition. If the work is deemed a "repair or renovation", the tenant holds the right to return when the work is done; however, if the work is deemed a "demolition", the tenancy rights come to an end. Accordingly, the quandary arises as to when work becomes so significant that a reno becomes a demo. In the Divisional Court decision in the case of Two Clarendon Apartments Limited v. Sinclair, 2019 ONSC 3845, provides the guidance where it is said:
[5] With respect to the interpretation of s. 50(1) of the Act, the Board concluded that there was a renovation here because the unit would be available in the same floor space, albeit reconfigured and extensively rebuilt. The Board considered the language of s. 50, especially the right of first refusal of a tenant pursuant to s. 50(3) if a unit is renovated. The Board also considered the purpose of this section, especially the tenant protection goal underlying s. 50(3).
13. In a situation where the rental unit continues to exist, albeit in an extremely altered form, it is possible for the tenant to exercise a right of first refusal, because the rental unit is still there: the tenant may move back and continue the tenancy. In a situation where the rental unit is gone, it is not possible for the tenant to exercise a right of first refusal: the rental unit is no longer there and so the tenant cannot move back. The fact that the Act distinguishes renovations and demolitions by the tenant’s right of first refusal shows that the intention of these sections of the Act is to preserve tenancies where it is possible to do so.
14. Accordingly, a project will be defined as a renovation under the Act in a case where it is possible for the tenant to move back into the unit and a project will be defined as a demolition where it is not possible for the tenant to move back into the unit.
[7] The Landlord argues that the Board should have adopted the analysis in One Clarendon Inc. v. Ross (Ontario Rental Housing Tribunal, June 16, 1999) at paras. 15 and 16, where the member stated:
All the dictionary definitions offered by the parties would lead me to believe that to be consistent, a demolition of an apartment must achieve the same result as a demolition of a building – it must cause it to disappear and change irrevocably. What subsequently happens to the space occupied by the building or the apartment does not concern the Tribunal. The land on which the building stood could be used to construct a new one or be left empty, the space where the apartment was can be used to build a new unit or can be converted into a storage space.
That means, to my mind, such a degree of change that what was there disappears. In an ideal situation, a demolition of an apartment means a removal of all interior walls and doors, flooring, water and other fixtures, kitchen cabinets, electrical cabling – and then rebuilding it with new materials and fixtures, if that’s the intention of the owner. Anything substantially less than that degree of change can not [sic] be described as a demolition of an apartment.
[8] I note that this passage was obiter, as the member found that there was a renovation on the facts of that case. I note, as well, that the Board did not consider the overall purpose of the section, as the current member did.
[9] The decision in the present case was consistent with the result in Corbett v. Lanterra Developments, 2014 ONSC 3297 (CanLII) (Div. Ct.), at para. 14, where there was a demolition permit, and the construction resulted in different units from those demolished, so that the tenant could not move back into the rental unit.
[10] In my view, the Board’s approach to the definition of demolition was reasonable and consistent with the Act and modern principles of statutory interpretation.
[11] On the facts, the evidence supports the finding of a renovation. I note, although the Board did not mention this, that the affidavit evidence from the City Building Official states that the City had not granted a demolition permit, and the building permit required the same unit outside area as prior to the renovations.
The definition of a demolition as being the complete elimination of the rental unit and the corresponding loss of the right for a tenant to return was also well explained within the Landlord Tenant Board decision of Star Towers Ltd. v. Wakunick-Fuery et al, 2023 ONLTB 64356, wherein it was said:
57. In my view, the test applicable to determine whether the work to be undertaken by a landlord is a 'renovation' or a 'demolition' is not dependent on the work to be undertaken, but the result and, in particular, whether the unit will continue to exist in some form after the work is completed.
58. In my view, paragraph 50(1)(a) contemplates a situation where the rental unit will cease to exist such that the tenant cannot reoccupy it once the work is completed. The word 'demolish' means to "pull down, completely destroy or break" and "destroy, pull down, or do away with something" [See Ma v Sedor, 2021 CanLII 139751 (ON LTB), para 13 and TEL- 63893-15 (Re), 2016 CanLII 38366 (ON LTB), para 11] While not directly application, I note that the Building Code deals with the issuance of construction and demolition permits. It defines 'demolish' as 'to do anything in the removal of a building or any material part thereof'. [Building Code Act, 1992, s. 1(1)]
59. Paragraph 50(1)(c), on the other hand, contemplates, in my view, a situation where the work being done is so extensive that vacant possession is necessary as a result, for example, the removal of structural components, power outages and interruptions to the water supply, but the unit will still exist in some modified form when the work is completed. The term 'renovation' is broad enough to include circumstances where there is a radical change to the floorplan of a unit or even a change in the size of the unit.
60. It is only where the rental unit is gone—no longer exists in any form—such that it is not possible for the tenant to exercise a right of first refusal that work to be undertaken to a rental unit or residential complex can be considered as involving the demolition of a unit. Any other interpretation of the distinction between 'renovation' and 'demolition' runs, in my view, contrary to the intent of section 53—it cannot be the intention of the Legislature that a landlord would be able evict a tenant without that tenant having a right of first refusal to reoccupy the unit by renovating a complex to change the configuration or size of the tenant's rental unit.
Summary Comment
Per the law, both the statutory law and the Two Clarendon case law interpretation of the statutory law as above, it seems clear that the right to return to a residential unit will exist if there will be a habitable unit to return to, such as will be following a repair or renovation; however, where a habitable unit will not exist, a renovation becomes demolition and the tenant's right to return ceases.
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