# Renting out my house



## Butters (Apr 20, 2012)

Hey, I live in Winnipeg Manitoba.

I have decided to move to Edmonton.

I bought a House August 1, 2012.

My Transfer to Edmonton is August 12, 2013

I found a suitable guy to move in. (Let's avoid all advice/comments regarding tenants)



What things will I need to switch / tell that I am no longer at this primary resident... and what could be some extra costs?


From what I understand, I have to switch my house insurance.
I should probably tell my mortgage lender...

On my taxes, since I'm not a home owner anymore I do not save the 700 rebate?

What else should I know, or expect?


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## none (Jan 15, 2013)

How about advice that it is likely a better financial move to sell the place  ?


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## Butters (Apr 20, 2012)

I'm moving back in 2 years.
I'm renting it for 1600, my mortgage is 1000.


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## Spudd (Oct 11, 2011)

I don't know what the "700 rebate" on your taxes is, but you'll still own the house so I guess you would still get it. You will have to declare the rent as income (minus expenses) and pay tax on it. 

You might want to get an assessment done on the value of your home in case you don't end up moving back. If you sell it in the future without moving back, it won't be your principal residence, and you will have to pay capital gains on the difference in value between when you moved out and when you sold it. 

Definitely you will have to change your home insurance. I'm not sure if you need to tell the mortgage holder but it can't hurt.


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## none (Jan 15, 2013)

I would still bail and enjoy those sweet tax free gains.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

Mortgage contracts often contain clauses about it being your primary residence.


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## marina628 (Dec 14, 2010)

I seriously think in my 22 years of investing in real estate I have experienced every scenario posted on this forum lol .Ok so here is what I did and what TD required when I turned my old residence into a rental in 2009.I had to qualify on paper because I was buying another house so if you just plan to rent you skip this step. They do ask for a copy of the lease once you have a tenant and you need to show them that you have properly insured the home to reflect there are tenants there .You need to switch utilities to your tenants name and in my case my mortgage company made us keep the water bill in our name .I believe it may have something to do with fact the municipality could put a lien on the house if it is not paid and also potential damage to home if the water was ever cut. We had our agent and another give us a value of the house at time we moved out in 2009 and we will use that when/if we ever sell to determine the capital gains.
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## generalbrock (Dec 5, 2012)

You definitely need to inform your insurance company, and the most important thing is to switch the name on the utilities. I worked for the City of Edmonton for three years in zoning, and I can't tell you how many houses were converted to marijuana grow ops. It was crazy - sometimes you would have 2-3 on a small quiet street with only single detached dwellings.

And if the utilities were still in the owners name, then they often had bills exceeding 50k. I saw more than a few owners wiped out by that.

You should also determine if the house is going to be single occupancy, especially in Edmonton. A lot of people turn them into mini-rooming houses which could also get you into some trouble with both zoning and building.

Hope this info helps.


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## Addy (Mar 12, 2010)

SheaButters said:


> On my taxes, since I'm not a home owner anymore I do not save the 700 rebate?
> 
> What else should I know, or expect?


Correct, you will not receive the 700 rebate for being a home owner living in your primary residence. There are (not so legal) ways around this. If you are in Winnipeg (assumption based on the chart none posted) you must mail in the form even if you are having taxes deducted with your mortgage, and it must be mailed to the actual address (I believe, possibly not in cases of elderly people who have others taking care of their finances - just one example). In that case if you know your tenant, just have them forward any mail that comes along to you (you don't have to pay postage for most, just write "Please forward to: (whatever address)".

Sigh. I miss Winnipeg. Good luck with your move and renting.


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