Chamber
manitoba
Stage
Introduced
This Manitoba bill updates rental housing rules covering landlord registration, tenant privacy, rent reviews, and higher penalties.
Key Changes
- Landlords must register detailed information about each rental unit with the Director of Residential Tenancies within one year or 30 days of a new tenancy
- Landlords must give at least 24 hours' notice before showing a rental unit to a prospective tenant while the current tenant still lives there
- Decisions or orders against tenants must be removed from public access after seven years (with exceptions for safety or unlawful activity violations)
- Tenants can apply to have non-safety-related orders removed from public access before the seven-year mark
- Rent regulation rules must be reviewed by the director every five years, with public consultation, starting by December 31, 2027
- Maximum administrative penalty for violating a director's order is doubled from $5,000 to $10,000, and penalties now apply to any director's order under the Act
Gotchas
- Sections on landlord registration and administrative penalties come into force by proclamation, not automatically on royal assent, meaning their start date is not yet determined
- For safety or unlawful activity violations, the seven-year automatic removal does not apply, and tenants must wait at least seven years before even applying for removal — creating a two-tier system
- The director's decision on whether to remove a tenant's record early is final and cannot be appealed, and a refused tenant must wait one year before reapplying
- The five-year rent regulation review requires public consultation but the minister is only required to table the report — there is no requirement to act on its findings
- Landlords must update their registered information within 30 days of any change, which creates an ongoing compliance obligation
Who's Affected
- Residential landlords in Manitoba
- Tenants in Manitoba, especially those with past orders or decisions against them
- Prospective tenants seeking to view rental units
- The Director of Residential Tenancies
- Property management companies and landlord agents
Vibes
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Gotchas
- Sections on landlord registration and administrative penalties come into force by proclamation, not automatically on royal assent, meaning their start date is not yet determined
- For safety or unlawful activity violations, the seven-year automatic removal does not apply, and tenants must wait at least seven years before even applying for removal — creating a two-tier system
- The director's decision on whether to remove a tenant's record early is final and cannot be appealed, and a refused tenant must wait one year before reapplying
- The five-year rent regulation review requires public consultation but the minister is only required to table the report — there is no requirement to act on its findings
- Landlords must update their registered information within 30 days of any change, which creates an ongoing compliance obligation
Summary
This bill amends Manitoba's Residential Tenancies Act to introduce several new rules for landlords and tenants. Landlords will be required to register information about each of their rental units with the Director of Residential Tenancies, including the address, a description of the unit, and contact details. They must also give at least 24 hours' notice before showing a unit to a prospective tenant while a current tenant still lives there. The bill also adds protections for tenants by limiting public access to orders or decisions made against them. After seven years, such records will no longer be publicly available — unless the order involved safety violations or illegal activity, in which case stricter rules apply. Tenants can also apply earlier to have non-safety-related records removed from public view. Additionally, the bill requires a review of Manitoba's rent regulation rules every five years, starting no later than December 31, 2027. It also increases the maximum administrative penalty for violating a director's order from $5,000 to $10,000 and expands which violations can trigger those penalties.
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Vibes
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