Prospective renter shocked by Toronto landlord’s ridiculous house rules

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In a case of “if something sounds too good to be true, chances are, it probably is,” someone thought they found the ideal place to rent — until they met with the landlord.

“I found a reasonably priced place in Toronto that I wanted, then the landlord showed me the house rules,” user Pizza-beer-weed shared on Reddit’s Slumlords Canada page of the residence in the Annex area.

They went on to detail that it was in a house divided into three apartments, one of which the landlord lives in — noting that he doesn’t share the space with any of the tenants.

“Just to clarify, the landlord or his kids don’t share any kitchen or bathroom with the tenants,” the Reddit user Pizza-beer-weed wrote. “Each apartment has its own bathroom and kitchen.”

You might wonder why the Redditor made sure to clarify those points — until you get a gander of the 18-point list of demands the landlord expects his tenants to live by, many of which were seen as infringing on tenants’ rights.

The landlord warned that violations of some of his rules —not obeying “quiet hours,” not keeping up with the “monthly household cleaning tasks,” and not locking exterior doors at all times “even when taking out garbage or going out for a smoke” — will result in a charge of $35 per month.

Showers are “limited to once a day, 15 minutes max,” while use of the kitchen would be restricted to “60 minutes per occasion.”

The landlord added that only cold or warm water is to be used when washing dishes and other cleaning tasks, while also noting that renters must “stay in the kitchen when cooking” or else “eviction can result.”

Also, overnight guests are forbidden, and if someone visits during the day, they must get the homeowner’s written permission beforehand.

Arguably, the most troubling point is informing renters they are considered boarders, not tenants “since you are sharing the kitchen and /or bathroom with the homeowners and/or their children.”

Naturally, the red flags were flying noisily in the comments section.

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“So if it’s three different apartments how are rules enforced?,” one user asked. “Sounds like boot camp or something and can’t be legal, right?”

Another chimed in, “I’ve lived in a situation like this. Trust me the rules won’t end there. Whoever takes this place get ready to be micromanaged to death. I mean how else can ‘15 minutes in the shower, 60 mins in the kitchen’ be enforced without basically stalker behaviour???”

A third person added: “I wouldn’t be surprised if the landlord has hidden cameras everywhere to see if you’re following the rules.”