by Charmaine Coutinho
As a volunteer lawyer with Calgary Legal Guidance, I advise clients who would otherwise be unable to access (paid) legal services to empower them to take the next steps in their legal matters independently. I commonly deal with landlord and tenant disputes.
This article discusses only leases covered by Alberta’s Residential Tenancies Act (RTA). The RTA excludes tenants sharing living space with a landlord, supported living accommodations, and a few other scenarios. I aim to help our community become more familiar with a few RTA topics, at a time when landlords and tenants are under stress and possibly looking for options.
Subletting
As the cost of living dramatically increases, the proportion of income we allocate to rent may shrink. Many now find themselves unable to afford what may once have been a comfortable rent. The solution, particularly for those in a fixed term lease, may be to sublet.
However, many leases purport to ban sublets. According to the RTA, a tenant can ignore any term in a lease that purports to erase a protection offered to tenants by the RTA. So, a tenant can ignore a lease term that bans subletting.
Under the RTA, a tenant needs a landlord’s written consent to sublet, and a landlord cannot refuse to provide consent without reasonable grounds. If a landlord has not given the tenant their written reasons for denial within 14 days of receiving the request, a tenant can assume that the landlord agrees to the sublet. A landlord also cannot charge the tenant a fee for giving consent for the sublease.
Before subletting, a tenant should understand how a sublet works: the primary lease between the tenant and the landlord still exists. As such, all of the tenant’s responsibilities and obligations under that primary lease continue despite the sublet. If the subletter fails to meet their tenancy obligations, the primary tenant would be responsible for meeting these obligations. For example, if a subletter fails to pay rent, the primary tenant is responsible for paying rent to the landlord. If a subletter damages the rental unit during or at the end of the tenancy, the primary tenant would be responsible for repairing the unit before surrender to the landlord or could be sued by the landlord for repairing the cost of damages done by the subletter. Any tenant planning to sublet should seriously consider the risks involved before entering into a sublease.
It is possible for a landlord to voluntarily agree to end the primary lease early, with pre-defined or no penalty fees, and set up a new lease with the interested subletter; this would be exclusively at the discretion of the landlord and cannot be forced by the tenant.
Domestic Violence and Tenancies
Victims of domestic violence can end a tenancy early and without financial penalty, without a landlord’s consent. This right arises in circumstances where the tenant’s or a dependant individual’s safety is at risk. There is a process to request an authorization certificate from the Alberta government; once the required documents are submitted, the applicant can receive a certificate within seven days. This certificate must be served on the landlord at least 28 days before the applicant terminates the tenancy.
If the applicant fears for their continued safety, they may leave the rental unit before receiving a certificate or before the end of the 28-day period.
Please reach out – there are supports from the city, province, and legal organizations serving vulnerable individuals, ready to offer confidential advice and assistance to those escaping domestic violence.
