What is it?
The rent increase guideline is the most a landlord can raise the rent in a year without approval from the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB). Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing sets it each year and publishes the next year’s guideline in The Ontario Gazette by August 31 (Residential Tenancies Act, s. 120).
It applies to most private rentals covered by the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA): rented houses, apartments, basement apartments, condos, care homes, mobile homes and land lease communities. This is what people mean by “rent control” in Ontario.
An increase within the guideline needs no LTB approval. Anything above it needs an LTB order or an agreement the Act allows.
This year’s and recent guidelines
| Year | Guideline |
|---|---|
| 2027 | 1.9% |
| 2026 | 2.1% |
| 2025 | 2.5% |
| 2024 | 2.5% |
| 2023 | 2.5% |
| 2022 | 1.2% |
| 2021 | 0% (COVID-19 rent freeze) |
| 2020 | 2.2% |
Checked on October 30, 2026 on ontario.ca, “Residential rent increases” (updated June 23, 2026). The guideline that applies is the one for the year in which the increase takes effect.
How is it calculated?
It uses the Ontario Consumer Price Index (CPI, Statistics Canada’s monthly measure of prices). The year-over-year change is averaged over the 12 months ending in May of the previous year (for example, June 2025 to May 2026 for the 2027 guideline) and rounded to one decimal place.
The law caps the guideline at 2.5% (s. 120 (2)). No matter how high inflation goes, the guideline for a year cannot exceed 2.5%. That is why it was 2.5% three years in a row, from 2023 to 2025.
Three rules for every increase
- The 12-month rule: for the same tenant, at least 12 months must have passed since the last increase, or since the tenant moved in (s. 119).
- 90 days’ written notice: the landlord must use the LTB form (N1; N2 for partially exempt units; N3 for care-home rent or charges for care services and meals) and give it at least 90 days before the increase (s. 116). A notice by text or word of mouth, or an increase with no notice, is void and the landlord must start again (s. 116 (4)).
- The amount: it must be within the guideline (s. 120 (1)), unless the LTB has ordered an above-guideline increase (s. 126) or the tenant has signed a written agreement (s. 121).
You do not have to sign the notice. If you receive one and do not give notice to leave (N9), you are deemed to have accepted whatever increase the Act allows (s. 118). An application challenging an increase must be made within one year after it was first charged (s. 136 (2)).
Worked example
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Move-in date and rent | March 1, 2026, $2,400 a month |
| Earliest increase | March 1, 2027 (12 months later) |
| N1 deadline | 90 days before March 1, 2027, so by the end of November 2026 |
| Guideline that applies | 1.9% for 2027 (the year the increase starts) |
| Maximum new rent | $2,400 × 1.019 = $2,445.60 |
The government’s own example works the same way: a tenancy that started at $1,000 on June 1, 2026 can go up by 1.9%, or $19, to $1,019 on June 1, 2027. The landlord can also ask you to top up the rent deposit (last month’s rent) by the same amount, and must pay interest on the deposit each year at that year’s guideline rate (s. 106 (6)).
When rent can go above the guideline
- Above-guideline increase (AGI, Form L5): the landlord applies to the LTB. There are only three grounds: (1) an “extraordinary” increase in municipal taxes and charges (more than 1.5 times the guideline, O. Reg. 516/06, s. 28), (2) eligible capital expenditures that protect or restore the building (a roof, plumbing, elevators and other major work), and (3) the cost of security services from an outside company (s. 126 (1)).
- For capital expenditures and security costs, the increase is limited to the guideline plus 3% a year; a larger justified amount is spread over up to three years at up to 3% a year (s. 126 (11)). There is no such cap for increases based on municipal taxes.
- The application must be filed at least 90 days before the first increase (s. 126 (3)), and until the order is made the tenant only has to pay up to the guideline amount (s. 126 (5)). The N1 form has a box for this: the increase is more than the guideline, and “I have applied to the Board for a Rent Increase Above the Guideline.”
- Agreement with the tenant (Form N10): in exchange for major repairs, new equipment or a new service, the landlord and tenant can agree in writing to an increase of up to the guideline plus 3% (s. 121 (3)). The tenant can cancel within five days of signing (s. 121 (4)).
- If you agree to add a parking space or another prescribed service, the rent can go up by that amount at any time (s. 123).
Homes the guideline does not cover
According to the Ontario government, the guideline does not apply to:
- New buildings, additions to existing buildings and most new basement apartments first occupied for residential purposes after November 15, 2018. See “Rent control exemption”. These homes still need 90 days’ notice and the 12-month rule, but there is no limit on the size of the increase.
- Turnover of a tenancy: the landlord and a new tenant agree freely on the starting rent.
- Community housing (public and social housing, which has different rent rules), long-term care homes and commercial properties.
- In care homes (such as retirement homes), the guideline applies only to the rent portion of the bill, not to nursing, food or cleaning.
What tenants should check and landlords must do
- Tenants: check that the N1 effective date is at least 90 days after you received it, that 12 months have passed since the last increase (or your move-in), and that the percentage is within the guideline (or the AGI box is marked). Keep the notice and your rent records.
- Tenants: if you are asked for more than the guideline and there is no LTB order, no N10 agreement and the unit is not exempt, pay the guideline amount and contact the LTB. If you already paid more, you can claim it back with a T1 application. But you cannot get back money paid more than one year before you apply (s. 135 (4)), and if you do not apply within one year after the increase was first charged, the increase is deemed lawful (s. 136 (2)).
- Landlords: use the current N1 form from the LTB website and record when and how you gave it. A defective notice makes the whole increase void, and you must start over.
- Landlords: we could not confirm from the Act whether an increase skipped in one year can be added to the next year’s increase. Check with the LTB or get legal advice.
Buying an investment property
If you buy a home with a tenant in place, that tenant’s rent can only rise by the guideline. Even if the rent is far below market, you cannot bring it to market until the tenant leaves. If the unit was first occupied after November 15, 2018 there is no cap, so before you buy, confirm when the building was first occupied, the current rent and the date of the last increase.
If you buy a vacant home and rent it out, you set the first rent freely, but every later increase for that tenant follows the guideline (unless the unit is exempt).
Example
Ms. Choi has rented a Thornhill townhouse built in 2010 since July 1, 2024, for $2,800 a month. On July 1, 2025 the landlord raised it by 2.5% ($70) to $2,870. In April 2026 the landlord texts that the rent will be $3,100 from July.
Two things are wrong. A text is not the LTB form (N1), and a $230 increase is far above the 2026 guideline of 2.1% ($60.27). If the landlord serves a proper N1, the rent can rise to at most $2,930.27, 90 days after the notice. Ms. Choi calls the LTB (1-888-332-3234) and keeps the text as a record.
What the law and official sources say
Quotes are copied word for word. The "In plain words" lines are our explanation, not an official translation.
The rent increase guideline for 2027 is 1.9%. … The guideline is the maximum a landlord can increase most tenants’ rent during a year without the approval of the Landlord and Tenant Board.In plain wordsThe 2027 guideline is 1.9%, and the guideline is the most a landlord can raise rent in a year without LTB approval.
Source: ontario.ca/page/residential-rent-increases · checked Oct 30, 2026
The rent increase guideline is capped at 2.5% to prevent significant one-time rent increases to tenants.In plain wordsEven in a high-inflation year the guideline cannot be more than 2.5%.
Source: ontario.ca/page/residential-rent-increases · checked Oct 30, 2026
No landlord may increase the rent charged to a tenant, or to an assignee under section 95, during the term of their tenancy by more than the guideline, except in accordance with section 126 or 127 or an agreement under section 121 or 123.In plain wordsA landlord cannot raise a tenant’s rent by more than the guideline, except under an LTB order (ss. 126, 127) or an agreement the Act allows (ss. 121, 123).
Source: ontario.ca/laws/statute/06r17 · checked Oct 30, 2026
the guideline for a calendar year is the percentage change from year to year in the Consumer Price Index for Ontario for prices of goods and services as reported monthly by Statistics Canada, averaged over the 12-month period that ends at the end of May of the previous calendar year, rounded to the first decimal point. 2. The guideline for a calendar year shall be not more than 2.5 per cent.In plain wordsThe guideline is the average year-over-year change in Ontario’s CPI over the 12 months ending in May of the previous year, rounded to one decimal, and never more than 2.5%.
Source: ontario.ca/laws/statute/06r17 · checked Oct 30, 2026
A landlord shall not increase the rent charged to a tenant for a rental unit without first giving the tenant at least 90 days written notice of the landlord’s intention to do so. … An increase in rent is void if the landlord has not given the notice required by this section, and the landlord must give a new notice before the landlord can take the increase.In plain wordsThe landlord must give at least 90 days’ written notice. An increase without that notice is void, and a new notice is needed.
Source: ontario.ca/laws/statute/06r17 · checked Oct 30, 2026
A landlord who is lawfully entitled to increase the rent charged to a tenant for a rental unit may do so only if at least 12 months have elapsed, (a) since the day of the last rent increase for that tenant in that rental unit, if there has been a previous increase; or (b) since the day the rental unit was first rented to that tenant, if clause (a) does not apply.In plain wordsFor the same tenant, rent can only go up once 12 months have passed since the last increase or since the tenant moved in.
Source: ontario.ca/laws/statute/06r17 · checked Oct 30, 2026
Rent increases for capital expenditures or security services cannot be more than 3% above the guideline each year. If the landlord justifies an increase that is more than 3% above the guideline, the increase can be taken over three years, at a rate of up to 3% above the guideline per year. For increases in the cost of municipal taxes and charges, there is no limit on the amount of rent increase that can be approved.In plain wordsAbove-guideline increases for major work or security are limited to the guideline plus 3% a year, spread over up to three years. Increases based on municipal taxes have no such limit.
Source: tribunalsontario.ca/documents/ltb/Brochures/A%20Guide%20to%20the%20Residential%20Tenancies%20Act.html · checked Oct 30, 2026
Common questions
My landlord texted that the rent goes up next month. Do I have to pay it?
No. An increase needs 90 days’ written notice on the LTB form (N1), and 12 months must have passed since the last increase or your move-in. An increase without proper notice is void (s. 116 (4)). Keep paying the current rent and contact the LTB.
My one-year lease is ending and the landlord wants more than the guideline in the new lease.
As long as you are the same tenant, the guideline applies even if you sign a new lease (s. 120 (1)). More than the guideline is only possible with an LTB order, an N10 agreement (guideline plus up to 3%), or if the unit was first occupied after November 15, 2018. You can also stay month to month without signing a new lease.
Can I get back rent I paid above the guideline?
Yes. Money collected against the Act can be claimed back with a T1 application to the LTB within one year of paying it (s. 135 (4)). A challenge to the lawfulness of an increase must also be filed within one year after it was first charged; after that, the increase is deemed lawful (s. 136 (2)). Keep the notice and your payment records.
If the rent goes up, do I have to top up the deposit?
If the landlord asks, yes: the rent deposit (last month’s rent) can be increased by the same amount. In return the landlord must pay interest on the deposit every year at that year’s guideline rate (s. 106 (6)), which is 2.1% for 2026.
How much can the rent go up for a new tenant?
There is no limit. When a tenant changes, the landlord and the new tenant agree on the starting rent freely. After that, the yearly guideline applies to that tenant (unless the unit is exempt).
Can I refuse a rent increase notice?
Not if the notice is lawful (right form, 90 days, 12 months, within the guideline). If you do not give notice to leave (N9), you are deemed to have accepted the increase the Act allows (s. 118). You do not have to pay the part above the guideline until the LTB makes an order (s. 126 (5)).
Guides that use this term
Sources checked
- Government of Ontario, Residential rent increases (guideline by year, calculation, exemptions; updated June 23, 2026) · checked Oct 30, 2026
- Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, ss. 106, 116–123, 126, 135, 136 (e-Laws) · checked Oct 30, 2026
- O. Reg. 516/06 (General), s. 28 — "extraordinary" municipal tax increase (e-Laws) · checked Oct 30, 2026
- LTB brochure, A Guide to the Residential Tenancies Act (rent increases, AGI, N10) · checked Oct 30, 2026
- LTB Form N1, Notice of Rent Increase (form and instructions) · checked Oct 30, 2026
- LTB, Forms, filing and fees (N1, N2 and N3 rent increase notice forms) · checked Oct 30, 2026
- LTB brochure, Information about Applications for a Rent Increase Above the Guideline · checked Oct 30, 2026