What Is a Lease Score? How to Know If Your Ontario Rental Agreement Protects You

Credit scores tell you whether a lender will trust you. A LeaseScore tells you whether your landlord's lease deserves your trust. It is a 0–100 grade of how well an Ontario residential lease protects the tenant under the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA, 2006) — calculated automatically from the actual text of the lease you upload at leasescore.co.

Why a single number?

Most Ontario tenants are not lawyers. A 12-page lease with 60 numbered clauses, an addendum, and a "house rules" appendix is genuinely hard to parse. A single LeaseScore — backed by per-category breakdowns — turns that wall of text into a clear answer: is this lease safe to sign, or do I need to push back?

How a LeaseScore is calculated

The score is the sum of six weighted categories, all grounded in the RTA:

• Rent & Payment Terms (20 points) — amount, due date, grace period, illegal deposits, NSF clauses.
• Entry & Privacy (15 points) — 24-hour written notice, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. window, emergency entry language.
• Maintenance & Repairs (15 points) — landlord vs. tenant responsibility split, appliance and pest-control terms.
• Termination & Eviction (20 points) — correct N-form references, statutory notice periods, no self-help eviction clauses.
• Tenant Obligations (15 points) — insurance, guest policy, cleanliness and noise rules within RTA limits.
• Addendums & Extras (15 points) — pets (Ontario's no-pets clauses are void), parking, subletting, utilities clarity.

What a healthy LeaseScore looks like

• 85–100 — Protected. The lease tracks the standard Form 2229 closely, the addendum is clean, and no clauses contradict the RTA.
• 70–84 — Moderate risk. Mostly fine, but a few clauses are vague or push obligations slightly onto you. Worth asking the landlord to clarify in writing.
• 50–69 — High risk. Several clauses are unenforceable or one-sided. You can sign and rely on the RTA to override them, but expect friction.
• Below 50 — Dangerous. The lease includes self-help eviction language, illegal deposits, or sweeping waivers of tenant rights. Do not sign without changes.

What a LeaseScore is not

A LeaseScore is not legal advice. It is a structured second opinion that helps you ask the right questions — and gives you exact clause references when you do. For high-stakes situations (rent above $3,000, commercial-residential mixed use, complex sublets), pair your score with a consultation from a paralegal or tenant clinic.

From score to action

Each issue in your LeaseScore comes with a plain-English explanation and a one-line suggested fix you can send to your landlord. That turns a vague feeling of "something is off" into a specific, negotiable change — before you sign.