Bill 155 explained in plain English
Life Leases Act, 2017
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
This Act establishes new rules for life lease agreements in Ontario, including disclosure requirements for landlords, provisions for holding entrance fees in trust, and requirements for reserve funds and insurance.
The proposed Life Leases Act, 2017, aims to regulate agreements where a person pays an entrance fee for a right to occupy a residential unit for life or for at least 50 years. It sets out requirements for landlords regarding information disclosure to tenants, handling of entrance fees, and maintaining reserve funds and insurance. The Act also establishes rules for tenant meetings, board meetings, and outlines penalties for violations.
- It defines what constitutes a "life lease" and related terms such as "entrance fee", "landlord", and "tenant".
- It states that the Act applies to all life leases, tenants, landlords, rental units, and residential complexes, regardless of when they were established, unless otherwise specified.
- It makes any attempt to restrict or waive the application of the Act or related rights and obligations void.
- It allows the Minister to publish a guide for consumers about life leases and may require this guide to be provided to tenants.
- It sets rules for permitted payments, including pre-lease payments and entrance fees, and requires landlords to disclose specific information to tenants before receiving these payments.
- It mandates that pre-lease payments and entrance fees be held in trust by the landlord or a trustee.
- It provides tenants with a "cooling-off" period of seven days to cancel a life lease after signing, unless a required statement of cancellation rights is not provided.
- It allows tenants to cancel their life lease if they do not receive possession of the rental unit within 30 days after the projected completion date, entitling them to a full refund of their entrance fee.
- It requires landlords to provide initial tenants with at least 60 days' notice of the possession date for their rental unit.
- It requires certain landlords to maintain a reserve fund for major repairs and replacements in the residential complex.
- It requires landlords to maintain insurance policies for the residential complex and provide tenants with notice of any cancellation, lapsing, or reduction of coverage.
- It mandates that landlords call tenant meetings at least four times per year, with specific rules on timing, notice, and content, including the review of financial information.
- It requires landlords to provide tenant representatives with notice of board meetings and access to by-laws and minutes.
- It requires prescribed landlords to obtain and provide audited financial statements for the residential complex upon request.
- It requires landlords to provide tenants with contact information for the management of the residential complex.
- It sets requirements for the appointment of trustees to receive and administer entrance fees and to manage a refund fund for refundable entrance fees.
- It allows for regulations to prescribe circumstances and minimum amounts for the refundability of entrance fees.
- It establishes offences and penalties for landlords or others who make false or misleading statements or contravene the Act or its regulations.
- It allows the Lieutenant Governor in Council to make regulations to govern various aspects of the Act, including definitions, exemptions, assignments, notices, transitional matters, and conflicts with other Acts.
- Landlords of residential complexes offering life leases.
- Tenants and prospective tenants of life leases.
- Trustees appointed under the Act.
- The Crown (the Act binds the Crown).
- Landlords have obligations to disclose information, hold payments in trust, maintain reserve funds and insurance, and call tenant meetings.
- Tenants have the right to receive disclosures, cancel leases under certain conditions, receive refunds, and attend meetings.
- Trustees have obligations to administer entrance fees and refund funds.
- The Act comes into force on a day to be named by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor.
- Tenant cancellation rights are generally seven days after the life lease or offer to lease is given to the landlord.
- Tenants can cancel if possession is not given within 30 days after the projected completion date.
- Landlords must provide at least 60 days' notice of the possession date to initial tenants.
- Refunds of entrance fees must be made within 14 days of cancellation due to the cooling-off period, or within 60 days of cancellation due to delayed possession.
- Landlords are required to maintain reserve funds for major repairs and replacements.
- Landlords must maintain insurance policies.
- The Act details how entrance fees and pre-lease payments are to be held in trust and potentially refunded.
- Penalties for offences include fines which may impact landlords or corporations.
- Landlords may be required to obtain and provide audited financial statements.
- Making false or misleading statements in relation to life leases or required disclosures is an offence.
- Contravention of any provision of the Act or regulations is an offence.
- Directors, officers, or agents of a corporation can be found guilty of an offence.
- Penalties for offences vary based on the type of offence, whether it's a first or subsequent offence, and whether the offender is an individual or a corporation.
- Penalties can include fines and imprisonment for individuals.
- A court may order compensation or restitution in addition to penalties.
- Prosecutions must be commenced within one year after the evidence of the offence becomes known to the Minister.
- The Act comes into force on a date to be proclaimed, meaning it is not yet active.
- Many details of the Act are to be "prescribed" by regulations, meaning they are not fully defined in the text of the bill itself.
- The specific amounts for pre-lease payments, reserve fund contributions, and refundable entrance fees are to be prescribed by regulation.
- The exact requirements and qualifications for trustees are to be prescribed by regulation.
- The specific information to be included in the consumer guide and provided in various notices and statements is to be prescribed by regulation.
The definition of 'landlord' in this Act is referenced and expanded upon in the Life Leases Act, 2017 for the purposes of life leases. The definition of 'tenant' in the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 is also referenced.
Source: Section 1(1)
This Act is referenced to define 'Minister' as the member of the Executive Council responsible for the administration of the Life Leases Act, 2017.
Source: Section 1(1)
This Act establishes a new legislative framework for life leases in Ontario.
Source: Section 25
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textProcess Snapshot
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced