Selling a Tenanted Property in Ontario: What Sellers Need to Know in 2026

By Stephanie Pinet, Broker of Record, REALTY HUB ONTARIO INC. · Realtor® since 2014 · Published October 2, 2026

A Hamilton duplex with a long-term tenant downstairs. A Burlington condo you rented out when you moved in with your partner. A Grimsby house you kept as a rental after your parents moved into retirement living. I meet a lot of owners in these situations, and the first question is almost always the same: can I sell my rental property with tenants in it?

Yes, you can. But selling a tenanted property in Ontario is a different job from selling an empty house. The tenancy, the likely buyer, the timing and your strategy all affect each other, and the rules changed again on September 21, 2026. This guide walks through what those rules mean for you as a seller, in plain language, so you can plan before you list.

The short answer: a sale doesn’t end the tenancy

Under Ontario’s Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA), a tenancy can only end in the ways the Act allows (section 37). Selling the property isn’t one of them. The RTA also says tenancy obligations “run with the land” (section 18), which in everyday terms means the buyer steps into your shoes as the landlord when the sale closes.

So if you’re selling a house with tenants in Ontario and nothing else happens, your buyer gets the property and the tenancy: the same tenant, the same lease terms and the same rent rules. Your lawyer will handle how the lease, rent and any deposit are dealt with on closing.

If you or your buyer want the property empty, there are only a few legal routes. Each one has its own conditions, timelines and risks, and none of them comes with a guarantee.

What changed on September 21, 2026

A new set of RTA amendments took effect on September 21, 2026, under the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025 (Bill 60) and the Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, 2023 (Bill 97). The Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) updated its forms and guidelines the same day. The changes that matter most if you’re selling a rental:

• Landlord’s own-use N12 with 120 days’ notice: no compensation required. If a landlord serves an N12 for their own or their family’s use on or after September 21, 2026, and the termination date is at least 120 days away (and falls on the last day of a rental period or the end of a fixed term), they no longer have to pay one month’s rent or offer another acceptable unit (new section 48.1(2) of the RTA). With less notice than that, the one-month compensation still applies.
• This 120-day exception does not apply when the N12 is for a buyer. If you give an N12 because your purchaser wants to move in, you still owe your tenant one month’s rent (or an acceptable unit), however much notice you give.
• A 60-day move-in deadline for own-use N12s. Under a new regulation (O. Reg. 240/26), if the person named in a landlord’s own-use N12 doesn’t move in within 60 days of the termination date (or within 60 days of the tenant moving out, if that’s later), the LTB presumes the notice was given in bad faith if the former tenant applies. The landlord can try to prove otherwise at a hearing. This presumption doesn’t apply to N12s given for a purchaser.
• New rules on delaying evictions. For N12 (and N13) cases, the LTB can delay an eviction if it’s satisfied the delay wouldn’t be unfair to the landlord or other tenants.
• A new N12 form. The LTB replaced the N12 on September 21, 2026. Older versions won’t be accepted as of November 30, 2026.

Other changes took effect the same day, such as a shorter notice period for unpaid rent (N4), but the points above are the ones that shape a sale.

What this means for you as a seller: the 120-day rule helps an owner who genuinely plans to move back in (or move in a parent or child) for at least a year. It is not a shortcut for emptying a property you intend to sell. More on why below.

Two very different N12 situations

People say “N12 when selling a house in Ontario” as if it’s one thing. It’s really two, with different rules. The LTB form covers both, but the law treats them separately.

In both cases the tenant can choose to leave earlier by giving at least 10 days’ written notice. And in both cases, an N12 is a notice, not an eviction. If the tenant doesn’t move out, only the LTB can end the tenancy, after a hearing.

How a purchaser’s own-use N12 actually works

This is the route most sellers ask about: “My buyer wants to live there, so can the tenant be asked to leave?” Here’s the sequence, step by step:

1. A signed deal comes first. You can’t serve this N12 to make the property easier to sell. There has to be an agreement of purchase and sale with a buyer who genuinely intends to live there (or have an eligible family member or caregiver live there).
2. You serve the N12 at your buyer’s request. The notice comes from you, as the current landlord, on the buyer’s behalf.
3. The date is set by the tenancy, not by your closing. The termination date must be at least 60 days after the notice is given and must fall on the last day of a rental period, or the end of a fixed-term lease. A tenant partway through a one-year lease can’t be given a date before that lease ends. For example, using the LTB’s own counting method, a month-to-month tenant who pays on the 1st and is handed an N12 on October 5 couldn’t be given a date earlier than December 31.
4. You pay one month’s rent (or offer an acceptable unit) by the termination date.
5. If the tenant stays, you apply to the LTB. You can file an L2 application as soon as the notice is served, and no later than 30 days after the termination date. The buyer (or the person moving in) must provide a sworn affidavit or declaration. The LTB can refuse the application if it isn’t reasonably certain the sale will close, or if the sale looks like a pretence to remove the tenant. You should give the tenant and the LTB a copy of the agreement at least 7 days before the hearing.
6. The LTB decides. Even if it finds the buyer’s intention is genuine, the LTB must still consider whether to refuse or delay the eviction.

That last step is why I never tell a seller “the buyer will get vacant possession on closing.” Your closing date is a contract term; the tenant’s move-out date depends on the RTA, the tenant and possibly the LTB. If they don’t line up, someone carries the risk. How that risk is handled in the agreement is something to work out with your lawyer before you accept an offer, not after.

Showings with tenants: privacy and 24-hour notice

Your tenant has a right to privacy while you sell. Under section 27 of the RTA, you (or a registered real estate brokerage or salesperson with your written authorization) can enter to show the unit to a potential buyer only with at least 24 hours’ written notice. The notice must state the reason, the day and a time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Without written notice, entry is allowed only in an emergency or if the tenant agrees at the time.

The legal minimum is only part of it. In my experience, a tenant who feels respected is the biggest single factor in how a tenanted listing shows. Before we list, I’d want to know:

• Does the tenant know you’re thinking of selling? Hearing it first from you, not from a sign on the lawn, makes a difference.
• Which days and times work for them? Grouping showings into set windows means fewer interruptions.
• Are they comfortable with photos or a video tour of their home? Their furniture and belongings are in it.
• Pets, shift work, young children: anything that affects when showings make sense.

Cash for keys and N11 agreements: only if the tenant truly agrees

The RTA lets a landlord and tenant agree to end a tenancy (section 37). The LTB has an optional form for this, the N11 Agreement to End the Tenancy. Sometimes an owner offers money or help with moving in exchange for the tenant agreeing to leave by a set date. That’s often called “cash for keys.”

The key word is agree. As the LTB puts it in its tenant brochure, “A landlord cannot force you to agree to end a tenancy.” The tenant can say no, ask for different terms or get their own advice. Pressure, threats or misleading a tenant about their rights is not a sale strategy. If you’re considering an offer like this, speak with a lawyer or licensed paralegal about how to do it properly.

Bad faith: the consequences are real

If a tenant moves out because of an N12 and the stated move-in never genuinely happens, the former tenant can apply to the LTB (a T5 application) within one year of moving out. If the LTB finds bad faith, the RTA allows orders including:

• the tenant’s increased rent for one year,
• general compensation of up to 12 months of the last rent,
• reasonable moving, storage and similar costs,
• a rent abatement, and
• an administrative fine of up to the greater of $10,000 and the Small Claims Court limit.

Here’s the part sellers miss. For a landlord’s own-use N12, the RTA presumes bad faith if, from the day the notice is given until one year after the tenant moves out, the landlord advertises the unit or the building for sale, advertises it for rent, re-rents it, demolishes it or converts it (section 57(5)). So “give my tenant an own-use N12, then list it once it’s empty” is exactly the pattern the law is designed to catch. If your plan is to sell, the own-use route usually isn’t the right tool, even with the new 120-day option.

Buyers aren’t off the hook either. The LTB’s guideline notes that a purchaser can be named in a bad-faith application and ordered to pay.

Sell with tenants in place, or aim for vacant possession?

Selling rental property in Ontario usually comes down to two paths: keep the tenant and sell to an investor, or plan for vacant possession and sell to someone who wants to live there. Neither is automatically better. It depends on the property, the tenancy and who is most likely to buy it.

Selling to an investor with the tenant staying

• Fits best when the rent is close to market, the tenant pays reliably and the property is the kind investors look for, like a legal duplex or triplex.
• No N12, no compensation and no LTB timeline tied to your closing.
• Your buyer pool is narrower, and investors will judge the price on the numbers: rent, expenses and the lease.
• Have the paperwork ready: the lease, rent history, any rent increase notices and a list of what’s included.

Selling to someone who wants to live there

• Opens the property to end-users, but the purchaser’s-own-use N12 is only available for buildings with three or fewer units, or a condo unit.
• Expect one month’s rent in compensation, a timeline set by the lease, and the possibility of an LTB hearing.
• Your agreement needs to deal honestly with what happens if the unit isn’t vacant on closing.

Waiting for the tenant to leave on their own

• If your tenant has already told you they’re moving, or wants to, a voluntary move-out can make the timing simpler. It has to be their choice.

Across Grimsby, Hamilton, Stoney Creek, Burlington, Oakville and the rest of Halton, and into Niagara, the right answer can change street by street. A Hamilton duplex with a solid tenant may draw a different buyer than a Burlington or Oakville condo, where an owner-occupier might pay more for an empty unit. That’s the analysis I do before we decide how to list.

Before you list: a tenanted-sale checklist

This follows the way I plan every sale, THE REALTY DEAL METHOD, adjusted for a property with a tenant in it.

1. Life. Why are you selling, and by when do you truly need the money or the move? Your deadline decides which routes are realistic.
2. Location. Who buys this kind of property in this area: investors, first-time buyers, downsizers? That points to tenanted or vacant.
3. Home. Is the lease fixed-term or month-to-month? When does the current term or rental period end? How many units are in the building? Is it a condo unit? What condition is the unit in?
4. Numbers. Start with a realistic value (see what nearby homes actually sold for, or request a free home evaluation), then compare your likely net under each scenario: selling with the tenant, compensation if a buyer’s N12 is used, carrying costs if timing slips.
5. Reality Check. Timelines can move. Tenants can choose to stay and ask the LTB to decide. Never plan around a guaranteed empty unit, and get legal advice on your specific tenancy.
6. Move. Plan showing notices and windows with your tenant, line up your lawyer, and set listing terms and offer conditions that match your chosen route. Here’s how I help sellers from first conversation to closing.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell my rental property with tenants in Ontario?

Yes. Selling doesn’t end the tenancy. The buyer takes over as landlord on closing unless the tenancy ends in one of the ways the Residential Tenancies Act allows.

Can my buyer make my tenant leave?

Only in limited cases. If the building has three or fewer residential units, or it’s a condo unit, and the buyer (or an eligible family member or caregiver) genuinely intends to live there, you can give the tenant an N12 on the buyer’s behalf after you’ve signed an agreement of purchase and sale. The tenant isn’t required to leave before the termination date, and if they don’t leave, only the LTB can end the tenancy.

Do I have to pay my tenant if the buyer wants to move in?

Yes. For a purchaser’s own-use N12, you as the seller must pay one month’s rent or offer another acceptable unit by the termination date. The 120-day exception that started on September 21, 2026 applies only to a landlord’s own-use N12, not to a buyer’s.

How much notice does my tenant get for showings?

At least 24 hours’ written notice that states the reason, the day and a time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., unless the tenant agrees to the entry at the time.

Can I give an own-use N12 and then sell once it’s empty?

That carries serious risk. For an own-use N12, the law presumes bad faith if the landlord advertises the unit or building for sale between serving the notice and one year after the tenant moves out. A former tenant can apply to the LTB for compensation and the landlord can be fined.

Sources

• Government of Ontario, Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (consolidation current from September 21, 2026), sections 18, 26, 27, 37, 48, 48.1, 49, 49.1, 55.1, 57 and 72
• Government of Ontario, O. Reg. 240/26: Prescribed Period of Time
• Tribunals Ontario, LTB Operational Update: Legislative Changes Effective September 21, 2026
• Landlord and Tenant Board, Instructions: N12 Notice (updated September 21, 2026)
• Landlord and Tenant Board, Interpretation Guideline 12: Eviction for Personal Use… and Tenant Applications for Bad Faith
• Landlord and Tenant Board, How a Tenant Can End Their Tenancy

Stephanie Pinet, Broker of Record | REALTY HUB ONTARIO INC. | The Realty Deal | Office 289-819-1118 | Cell 905-630-8255
A home you love. A life that fits.

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