# Renting Condo (as tenant) - Good?



## motl (Mar 3, 2014)

It's easy to find information from the landlord's perspective, but not from the tenant's.

I'm currently looking for a new home to rent in the Ottawa-Gatineau area, and there just isn't a lot available that fits what I'm looking for in terms of apartments. In Gatineau there are countless beautiful condos for rent at reasonable prices, but I'm a bit wary of renting a condo from an individual owner. It bothers me that I'd be at the mercy of both a landlord AND a condo corporation. I have a well-behaved dog, but his presence raises my concern more.

Interested to know what you guys think. For the same price I can add 200-300 square feet + modern kitchens and bathrooms by moving across the river. I'm just not sure about renting a condo. Does anyone here have any insights as either landlord or tenant for condo rental that might be useful for me to know?

Thanks


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## Spudd (Oct 11, 2011)

I don't have any experience renting condos, but I just wanted to mention be sure to look at how your income taxes will be affected by moving to Quebec. My understanding is that Quebec taxes are quite a bit higher than Ontario. You can run scenarios on taxtips.ca with your real numbers.


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## motl (Mar 3, 2014)

Yup, already taken that into account. My car insurance will drop significantly, so as long as I spend a bit less on the rent in Quebec than I would in Ontario, I can break even despite the higher taxes. 

Thanks though!


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## marina628 (Dec 14, 2010)

I would be concerned about the dog in the condo and I am not bias as I have a rental(house) and my tenants have a dog and cats.My friend however lives in a condo building with a small dog and the dog only barks when he gets excited to go outside but that is enough for her to have regular complaints posted on her door.If you do rent a condo I probably would go with ground floor just for the pet element.Renting a condo vs an apartment building you won't have the owner evicting you because they want to move in and they probably won't sell it while you are living there .


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## motl (Mar 3, 2014)

marina628 said:


> I would be concerned about the dog in the condo and I am not bias as I have a rental(house) and my tenants have a dog and cats.My friend however lives in a condo building with a small dog and the dog only barks when he gets excited to go outside but that is enough for her to have regular complaints posted on her door.If you do rent a condo I probably would go with ground floor just for the pet element.Renting a condo vs an apartment building you won't have the owner evicting you because they want to move in and they probably won't sell it while you are living there .


This was my issue too. My dog is young, but well-behaved and getting better. The only time he barks at home is when he sees people right outside our house through the bay window, which he wouldn't really have in a condo/apartment. He's not destructive when it comes to floors, furniture, etc. (cushions on the other hand...).

I don't think he'd be a problem, BUT it only takes annoying one person on the condo board (ie. grudge) for it to become an issue, and at that point it makes perfect sense for the landlord to start making life difficult because of the pressure from above. As much as I'd love to have a 'nicer' place to call home, I'm worried that I'd be walking on eggshells. Obviously it depends on the condo board and community, but many of these condos are new (last 4 years, some brand new) so it's almost impossible to research that before hand.

Ugh, just frustrating that Ottawa's apartment market is so awful. Everything is either horrifically ugly and dated (and not cheap) or super overpriced.


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## NotMe (Jan 10, 2011)

motl said:


> This was my issue too. My dog is young, but well-behaved and getting better. The only time he barks at home is when he sees people right outside our house through the bay window, which he wouldn't really have in a condo/apartment. He's not destructive when it comes to floors, furniture, etc. (cushions on the other hand...).
> 
> I don't think he'd be a problem, BUT it only takes annoying one person on the condo board (ie. grudge) for it to become an issue, and at that point it makes perfect sense for the landlord to start making life difficult because of the pressure from above. As much as I'd love to have a 'nicer' place to call home, I'm worried that I'd be walking on eggshells. Obviously it depends on the condo board and community, but many of these condos are new (last 4 years, some brand new) so it's almost impossible to research that before hand.
> 
> Ugh, just frustrating that Ottawa's apartment market is so awful. Everything is either horrifically ugly and dated (and not cheap) or super overpriced.


You know not everyone who complains about a dog barking is annoying or unfair. I lived in a building where my neighbours dog would bark everytime anyone on the floor opened or closed their door, or walked in the hall by the dog as it sat there - all day - on the otherside of the door. It was really unfair to pay the same as other people, only to have the dog barking loudly 20 times a day. That's not cool either. 

Ultimately the board told the resident either the dog left or he did. The dog left.


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## motl (Mar 3, 2014)

NotMe said:


> You know not everyone who complains about a dog barking is annoying or unfair. I lived in a building where my neighbours dog would bark everytime anyone on the floor opened or closed their door, or walked in the hall by the dog as it sat there - all day - on the otherside of the door. It was really unfair to pay the same as other people, only to have the dog barking loudly 20 times a day. That's not cool either.
> 
> Ultimately the board told the resident either the dog left or he did. The dog left.


And that person is an *******. Both for allowing the dog to act like that and then abandoning the dog when it's poor training resulted in an ultimatum. 

But you should know that not every complaint is reasonable. Someone could simply dislike a larger dog in their building, or perhaps he peed on some common grass and it offends someone. Or maybe he barked once or twice. There are plenty of things to worry about when it comes to dogs. I consider myself to be a responsible dog owner, so I'm not worried about legitimate complaints because I would not allow undesirably behavior to become a problem. But in communities where condo board members can carry significant weight, I'd certainly be worried about somehow offending the wrong person.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

motl said:


> Yup, already taken that into account. My car insurance will drop significantly, so as long as I spend a bit less on the rent in Quebec than I would in Ontario, I can break even despite the higher taxes.
> 
> Thanks though!


Just so you know, the only reason your car insurance would drop is because you would be living in an area of bad drivers and low theft rates. The low theft rates may sound good, but it does not reflect the better character of the people in your neighbourhood. When it comes to car theft, there is a "not in my back yard" mentality with the thieves. They tend to steal the cars in an area that they are not known or recognized. In your case that would most likely be Ottawa. Unfortuneately those people will live in your neighbourhood and will drink and party and get in to some other type of trouble that you might not want to be caught in the middle of.

Something to think about. Crooks and idiots do live everywhere, but there are more in some places then others.


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## motl (Mar 3, 2014)

OptsyEagle said:


> Just so you know, the only reason your car insurance would drop is because you would be living in an area of bad drivers and low theft rates. The low theft rates may sound good, but it does not reflect the better character of the people in your neighbourhood. When it comes to car theft, there is a "not in my back yard" mentality with the thieves. They tend to steal the cars in an area that they are not known or recognized. In your case that would most likely be Ottawa. Unfortuneately those people will live in your neighbourhood and will drink and party and get in to some other type of trouble that you might not want to be caught in the middle of.
> 
> Something to think about. Crooks and idiots do live everywhere, but there are more in some places then others.


Nah, in this case it's because car insurance is stupidly cheap (ie. subsidized) in Quebec.

Also, postal code has less to do with car theft than many people assume. There is a lot that goes into the calculation. Risk is calculated based on the likelihood of a future claim, so postal codes are often rated by looking at the frequency and size of claims relative to other postal codes in the city. This can include the likelihood of claims due to crime but also accidents (commuting on congested city streets vs highways for example) and perceived character of residents in the area. If your postal code is claiming more often and for higher amounts than the norm, expect to pay higher premiums. 

Source: I'm an insurance agent


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## AltaRed (Jun 8, 2009)

The question is whether the condo board's bylaws allow pets and if so, whether there are any constraints on what can be owned. Example: cat only, or small dog or cat, etc. If the bylaws allow what you own, then it is only a matter between your landlord and yourself whether the landlord will accept a lease with a pet. Find out what the condo board bylaws say first.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

If you want to see how bad it can be, your landlord and you could agree and then the Board changes the rules. Look at the pets section of the Alberta condo owners' site:
http://www.albertacondominiums.ca/


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## rikk (May 28, 2012)

Condo vs apartment ... when my son was looking he determined by asking around, mainly friends and acquaintances, that the condo renters were at the mercy of the condo owner ... they'd drop by anytime, not fix things, make threats, were unreasonable about e.g. housekeeping ... whereas renting from a properties management was as it should be ... things were fixed, paint if you want, run cable, put up curtains rods ... just make it like it was before you move ... so my son is in an 3 bedroom apartment in a well managed building with 2 custodians on duty where everyone, especially seniors I'm hearing, is treated with respect.


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## motl (Mar 3, 2014)

kcowan said:


> If you want to see how bad it can be, your landlord and you could agree and then the Board changes the rules. Look at the pets section of the Alberta condo owners' site:
> http://www.albertacondominiums.ca/


This is exactly what I was referring to. In a normal landlord situation, you agree to terms with one person and could even include certain terms within a drafted lease agreement. In a condo, the condo board has complete authority and even if your landlord has good intentions, rule changes or renovations or other issues may arise, over which you and your landlord have no control. Like I said, with an older condo community I could probably do some research by speaking with current residents, but these developments here are so new that I doubt that'd be feasible. 



rikk said:


> Condo vs apartment ... when my son was looking he determined by asking around, mainly friends and acquaintances, that the condo renters were at the mercy of the condo owner ... they'd drop by anytime, not fix things, make threats, were unreasonable about e.g. housekeeping ... whereas renting from a properties management was as it should be ... things were fixed, paint if you want, run cable, put up curtains rods ... just make it like it was before you move ... so my son is in an 3 bedroom apartment in a well managed building with 2 custodians on duty where everyone, especially seniors I'm hearing, is treated with respect.


Agreed.

With an apartment I'd get less for my money in terms of space and allure, but at least I'd know that the terms of my lease are solid for its duration. Plus, with an apartment I get to decide how long I live there while a condo owner could decide to move in once my lease ends.

Mostly confirmed my doubts. I'll probably stick with an apartment for now and save the bigger, prettier space for when I'm ready to buy again.


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## dougboswell (Oct 25, 2010)

Something else not mentioned is rent increases. In Ont. if the building was built after 1995 (give a year or two) it is not subject to rent controls. At the end of the year lease an owner could raise the rent by any amount they want to as opposed to those that are subject.o what the provincial guidelines are. In Toronto most condos probably not subject.


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## Sherlock (Apr 18, 2010)

You can rent a condo through a rental agency. Example: http://www.delrentals.com/en/



dougboswell said:


> Something else not mentioned is rent increases. In Ont. if the building was built after 1995 (give a year or two) it is not subject to rent controls. At the end of the year lease an owner could raise the rent by any amount they want to as opposed to those that are subject.o what the provincial guidelines are. In Toronto most condos probably not subject.


I don't think this is a concern because landlords know what the market rate is for their unit and they know if they raise the rent above market rate the tenant will just move out to a cheaper unit down the hall.




rikk said:


> Condo vs apartment ... when my son was looking he determined by asking around, mainly friends and acquaintances, that the condo renters were at the mercy of the condo owner ... they'd drop by anytime, not fix things, make threats, were unreasonable about e.g. housekeeping ... whereas renting from a properties management was as it should be ... things were fixed, paint if you want, run cable, put up curtains rods ... just make it like it was before you move ... so my son is in an 3 bedroom apartment in a well managed building with 2 custodians on duty where everyone, especially seniors I'm hearing, is treated with respect.


Really... I rent a condo from a private landlord and I never heard of anything like this. He's never once dropped by since the day I moved in. If the landlord just drops by anytime you can tell him to **** off. If he refuses to fix things you can call the LTB. And he has no right to make any kind of demands other than that you keep the unit in a state that would be judged clean by a reasonable person. Tenants have rights, you just gotta make sure you know what they are.


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