Your Thoughts on this..? (copied from a Rental Agreement)

[Nir]

Hi,
The following sections on smoke detector, insurance and ending a lease were copied from a lease sent to me as an example:

"SMOKE DETECTORS: The Tenant acknowledges receipt of smoke alarm maintenance information and agrees to immediately notify the Landlord in writing of any damage to or malfunction of any smoke detector supplied by the Landlord and the Landlord agrees to service same, provided:

(i)The Landlord shall furnish a battery for each smoke detector requiring same at the time the Tenant takes possession of the Rented Premises, which battery shall thereafter be replaced as needed from time to time by the Tenant;

[/size]34. The tenant shall be responsible for providing property damage insurance for the contents of the rental unit and reasonable liability insurance. Such insurance shall exclude the exercise of any claim by the insurer, whether by subrogation or otherwise against the landlord and against those for whom the landlord is in law responsible.



35. If the tenant wishes to terminate the tenancy at the end of the term, he or she must give notice in writing prior to expiration of the term. If no such notice is delivered and no further agreement entered into, the tenancy continues on a month to month statutory tenancy. A statutory tenancy must give 60 days written notice to end a monthly tenancy."



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Would you mention anything about smoke detectors and/or 34. and or 35. above in the agreement?

I see reasons for and against including the above in a lease. Thanks.

 

[Kimberly]

The following is copied from my lease. Part of my due dilgence is to ensure I am legally and morally covered with regards to safety and smoke detectors and co2 detectors and their ongoing functioning is an important part of that. I don`t leave it up to my customers to change the batteries as stated in my lease below....

SMOKE DETECTORS and CO2 DETECTORS: At the time of occupancy, the Landlord will have installed a smoke detector with new batteries or direct wired, one on each floor and in accordance with the requirements of the local fire department, along with one CO2 detector. The Tenant shall notify the Landlord, in writing, of any damage to or malfunction of any smoke detector and/or CO2 detector. If the malfunction is due to the Tenant’s removal of or failure to replace the battery, or tampering or adjustments made thereto or removal thereof by the Tenant or his guests, the Tenant shall reimburse the Landlord for any expenses incurred for replacement or servicing of the equipment. The landlord will be allowed to entry the rented premises at minimum once every 6 months, in order to test and replace the batteries in all smoke detectors, in the presence of the tenant(s), who will then initial a smoke detector/CO2 maintenance log.
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With regards to insurance....I`m just in the midst of changing over to another insurance carrier, and one of the conditions that the quote was subject to was "All tenants sign leases & are requested to carry their own insurance." I get copies of their insurance and keep them on file. I can`t guarantee they wouldn`t cancel it at any time, but I feel I`ve done my due diligence on this matter. I also try to explain the difference of what my insurance covers and what it doesn`t cover vs what their content and liability insurance would cover.


INSURANCE: The Tenant shall, during the entire period of this tenancy and any renewal thereof, at their sole cost and expense, obtain and keep in full force and effect tenancy insurance which will include contents, property damage and public liability insurance in an amount equal to that which the insurance company acting reasonable, considers adequate. A copy of the tenant’s insurance will be given to the Landlord prior to the date of occupancy.
The Tenant expressly agrees to indemnify the Landlord and save it harmless from and against any and all claims, actions, damages, liability and expenses in connection with loss of life, personal injury and/or damage to property arising from any occurrence in the rented premises, the use thereof by the Tenant occasioned wholly or in part by any act or omission of the Tenant, or by anyone permitted to be in the rented premises by the Tenant.

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Lastely....I believe the 60 day notice is a requirement under the RTA in Ontario anyways but I like to spell is out. I also include what their obligations are unpon termination... ie cleaning the apartment etc. As a landlord we can ask for it and so far I`ve had great success with customers carrying out my requests. We are in a business transactions with our customers, and when we treat them with respect while they are renting from us, along with a move in gift and Christmas basket (that helps too), and we each know what is expected from each other, then they tend to act in kind.


TERMINATION OF TENANCY AT END OF TERM: If the tenant desires to terminate the tenancy at the end of the term of this agreement, they shall give written notice in accordance with the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) and not less than sixty (60) days prior the expiration of this agreement. If the Tenant remains in occupation after the end of the termination of this Agreement, the Tenant shall become a monthly Tenant under the terms and conditions herein and subject to any valid Notice of Rent Increase served by the Landlord and nothing shall prevent the parties from agreeing in writing to any other terms for the monthly tenancy.

Upon written notice to the Landlord, not less than 60 days to termination of tenancy, the tenant agrees to vacate the rented premises by 1 o’clock pm on the final day of this Tenancy Agreement or any renewal thereof.

After service of notice of termination, the Tenant shall arrange with the Landlord to complete and outgoing inspection report, which is to be signed by both parties. Failure to complete an outgoing inspection report will be deemed acceptance by the tenant of the Landlord’s written findings upon her final inspection. Upon termination of the tenancy, the Tenant shall give vacant possession and deliver all keys of the rented premises to the Landlord. Failure to comply with this provision shall render the Tenancy liable to an administration charge of $100 in addition to any other liability imposed upon the Tenant by this Agreement or by law.

The premises shall be left fit for immediate occupation by the new Tenant, clean, undamaged, and with all furniture and refuse removed. The Tenant shall:
- leave the rented premises, appliances and all else in the same condition as existed at the commencement of the term or in the condition upon improvement made by the Landlord.
- Leave hardwood floors, carpeting, walls, ceilings, windows, doors and every other part of the rented premises in a clean condition
- Leave the stove, fridge, microwave, clothes washer and dryer in a clean condition inside and outside, and replace any broken, missing, or damaged parts before vacation
- Remove all contents and refuse from the rented premises
- Should the Landlord have to clean or treat the rented premises as a result of the tenant’s failure to comply with his obligations under the clauses with the termination of tenancy at end of term, the Tenant shall reimburse the Landlord for all costs incurred in respect of same.

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What would your reasons be against including any of this?

 

[invst4profit]

#34 - is not enforceable nor is it recognised by the LTB as justification, if not provided by tenant, for eviction. As suggested tenants can cancel at any time and in fact not get the insurance at all once the lease is signed. Landlords may insist on tenant insurance but it is actually only by mutual agreement.
I do not see any reason to not include it in your lease (I do) but it only covers the tenants contents and does not exclude the landlords insurer from liability.

#35 - is in the RTA already but again is definitely worth pointing out to tenants.

As far as smoke/fire alarms are concerned it is the landlords responsibility and is best not left to tenants to take care of. Regardless of the language in the lease, in Ontario, it will come back on the landlord in the event of a fire.
Provincial regulations supercede leases.

Unfortunately what many landlords in Ontario do not understand is that although landlords may add any rules they chose to there lease agreement, that do not contradict the RTA, the LTB will only enforce their own rules.

 

[NorthernAlex]

I changed yesterday all batteries in the smoke/CO2 detectors while collecting rent and gave a notice to every tenant that the batteries will be changed every 6 months when the winter/summer time changes (next following 1st of a month). Next time 1st of November 09.

I added a copy of the mentioned notice to every tenant file.

QUOTE (invst4profit @ Apr 2 2009, 08:51 AM) .......

Unfortunately what many landlords in Ontario do not understand is that although landlords may add any rules they chose to there lease agreement, that do not contradict the RTA, the LTB will only enforce their own rules.
Could you explain that. Sorry, I didn`t understand it!

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Kimberly and Greg, would it be bold to ask for a copy of your rental agreement? As a newbie I would certainly be very interested to see not only the "Landlord package" from Stamples. (email would be NorthernAlex at gmx.org).

Thank you very much!

 

[invst4profit]

Any rules or language that a landlord added to the lease above and beyond those found in the RTA are
no more than "mutual agreement" between landlord and tenant. The LTB will not enforce them in the event a tenant violates those rules. The LTB will not allow a landlord to evict a tenant or penalise a tenant for violation of mutually agreed to rules only RTA rules are grounds for action by the LTB.

The LTB does not view the lease agreement as a legally binding contract beyond there own specific jurisdiction.

(my lease agreement would be of no use to you as it is specific to a land lease community)

 

[NorthernAlex]

Greg, thank your for the explanation. Gotcha!

 

[Nir]

Thank You Everyone. Very Helpful!

Neil

 

[Kimberly]

Alex:

I`m in the midst of having my lawyer review my lease, as I had pieced it together from a previous OKd legal lease, but I have updated it with certain phrases/events that have come up on this REIN site, so in total it needs to be reviewed again.

It also perhaps has language that may apply to London (re from specific London Fire department rules on checking smoke detectors), but North Bay may have other differences as well.

You might also want to look into any local North Bay property owner/property management associations in your city. The London organization provides for its members - leases and all kinds of other updates on local information...especially interesting is their municipal involvment in issues at city hall that affect landlords eg most recently licensing of rentals and upcoming special requirements and licensing of student rentals.

Will you be attending the ACRE weekend coming up in TO? If so maybe we can touch base there.

 

[GarthChapman]

It seems to me that no matter how you attempt to ensure your tenant knows it is their responsibility to check the operation of battery smoke detectors - in the event of a fire, esppecially with a serious injury or death, you will never sleep well again. Not to mention you will most likely be in for a time in the courts.

Our leases contain the standard mentions of smoke detectors and the requirement for checking them regularly.

But we have been much more focused on ensuring they work no matter what. We don`t bother with battery operated smoke detectors, except as additional back-ups. We have upgraded all properties to have 110v interconnected smoke detectors. We test all detectors at least annually. Best to do this yourself with the tenant there with you.

 

[Kimberly]

I also have my customers sign and date a form that states what was checked and that they saw what was done. Added due diligence. I had sent over a copy of my smoke detector/co2 detector forms, including one from our local fire department, in a previous REIN discussion, so if you search for it via the search engine it should come up.

 

[NorthernAlex]

Hi Kimberly.

Yes, I will be at ACRE in YYZ. I will also join the monthly REIN Meeting the Friday before and become member there.

Lookinf fwd. in meeting the faces to nicknames here!

 

[gregg]

Hi Alex,
Look forward to meeting a fellow northerner at the monthly REIN meeting and following ACRE weekend. See you there!

Gregg Miller, Sudbury

 

[NorthernAlex]

Hey Gregg.

Great!
Just a brain fart: I can offer to drive down there, if you come to NB. Anyhow, looking forward in meeting you there.