Review Your Ontario Lease Before You Sign

An Ontario lease review turns a dense rental agreement into a clear summary of what you are actually agreeing to: the rent and how it can change, what deposit is being collected, which repairs are yours, when the landlord may enter, and what leaving early would cost. Upload your lease PDF and LeaseScore returns a 0–100 score with the specific terms worth a second look — in plain English, in about a minute.

What the review checks

• Rent and payment terms — amount, due date, payment method, late-payment and NSF wording.
• Deposits — what is being collected and whether it is described as refundable.
• Additional terms and addendums — the pages where unusual obligations usually hide.
• Maintenance and repairs — how responsibility is divided between landlord and tenant.
• Entry and privacy — notice periods and stated reasons for entering the unit.
• Exit risk — assignment, subletting, ending the tenancy and any charges attached to leaving.
• Clarity — vague, blank or contradictory sections that are worth clarifying in writing.

How LeaseScore works

1. 1. Choose the Home category and set your location to Ontario, Canada.
2. 2. Upload the lease PDF. Text is extracted from the document you provide.
3. 3. LeaseScore reviews the uploaded text against a structured Ontario-focused rubric and flags potential issues across six universal dimensions.
4. 4. You get a 0–100 score, a short verdict and the three things most worth knowing. The full clause-by-clause report is available as a one-time purchase.

Common Ontario terms worth checking

For most private residential tenancies, Ontario requires the standard lease and sets baseline rules that an agreement generally cannot override. A few areas come up repeatedly:

• The form itself. Most private residential tenancies entered into on or after April 30, 2018 generally must use Ontario's standard lease. Some tenancies are excluded — see the Ontario.ca guide.
• Deposits. Generally, only a rent deposit applied to the last rental period and a refundable key deposit limited to reasonable replacement cost may be collected.
• Additional terms. Terms added in the appendix generally cannot conflict with the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006; where they do, they are generally unenforceable.
• Entry. Written notice requirements and permitted hours are set out in the Act rather than by the lease.
• Signatures and copies. Check that every party signed and that you received the complete signed agreement, including any appendix and information pages.

What your score means

The LeaseScore is a deterministic weighted sum across cost transparency, flexibility and exit, fees and penalties, obligations and restrictions, protection and fairness, and clarity. A high score means the agreement reads as clear and balanced on the terms we can see in the document. A low score means several terms are one-sided, vague or expensive to exit — a signal to ask questions and get changes in writing, not a legal ruling.

Official Ontario sources

• Ontario.ca — A guide to Ontario's standard lease
• Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (S.O. 2006, c. 17)
• Landlord and Tenant Board — Guide to the Residential Tenancies Act

Limits of this review

LeaseScore reads only the document you upload. It cannot see side agreements, verbal promises or your building's circumstances, it does not cover every tenancy type, and rules change over time. This page and any report are general information, not legal or financial advice. For a decision that matters, confirm against the official sources above or speak with a licensed paralegal, lawyer or a local tenant clinic.

Last reviewed: September 2, 2026

FAQ

Does LeaseScore tell me if my Ontario lease is legal?

No. LeaseScore reviews the uploaded text against a structured Ontario-focused rubric and flags potential issues so you know what to ask about. It is not legal advice and it does not certify compliance.

Do all Ontario tenancies use the standard lease?

Most private residential tenancies entered into on or after April 30, 2018 generally must use Ontario's standard lease, but there are exceptions — for example certain care homes, sites in mobile home parks and land lease communities, and most social and supportive housing. Check the Ontario.ca guide for the current exceptions.

What deposits can a landlord generally collect?

Generally, a landlord may collect a rent deposit that is applied to the last rental period, plus a refundable key deposit that is limited to the reasonable replacement cost. Other deposits, such as damage or pet deposits, are generally not permitted. Confirm your situation against the official sources linked on this page.

How long does a review take?

Uploading a PDF and receiving your LeaseScore usually takes under a minute. You can read the summary and score for free.