Welland Tenants Don't Know Who Their Landlord Is: What Ontario Law Requires

In Ontario, every written lease must set out the landlord's legal name and an address for notices, and the tenant must get a signed copy within 21 days (Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, s.12). If the landlord has not complied, rent is suspended until they do, but the landlord can then collect what was held back.

WELLAND, Ont., Nov. 12, 2026: Tenants at 195 Denistoun Street in Welland say they do not know who their landlord is or where their rent has gone, after the building's management company filed for insolvency in September, the Welland Tribune reported. The report names the company as Burlington-based Simple Investor Real Estate Group Management Inc. Ontario law already answers part of the tenants' question: the lease itself must say who the landlord is.

What does Ontario law say about the landlord's name and address?

Ontario's Residential Tenancies Act requires every written tenancy agreement made on or after June 17, 1998 to set out the landlord's legal name and the address to be used for giving notices and other documents under the Act (RTA s.12(1)). The landlord must give the tenant a copy signed by both parties within 21 days after the tenant signs it and hands it over (s.12(2)). If the agreement is not in writing, the landlord must give written notice of the legal name and address within 21 days after the tenancy begins (s.12(3)).

On the Ontario Standard Lease, the landlord is named in section 1 (Parties to the agreement) and the address where notices must be sent is in section 3 (Contact information), according to the province's guide to the standard lease.

A property manager is not automatically the landlord. The Act defines "landlord" to include the owner of a rental unit or another person who permits occupancy, along with their heirs, assigns, personal representatives and successors in title (RTA s.2(1)). When a manager stops operating, the owner does not stop being the landlord.

What it means for tenants

An Ontario tenant whose landlord never provided the legal name and address, or a signed copy of a written lease, is not required to pay rent until the landlord complies (RTA s.12(4)). That is a suspension, not a waiver: once the landlord complies, they may require the tenant to pay the rent that was withheld (s.12(5)).

If your lease already names the landlord and an address for notices, s.12(4) does not suspend your rent. That name and address are where to send written questions about who should now receive payment.

Tenants whose lease should have been on the standard form but was not have a separate right: they may demand a standard-form lease in writing once during the tenancy, and if the landlord does not provide one within 21 days, withhold up to one month's rent (RTA s.12.1(5)-(7)). Our guide to the landlord's legal name and the 21-day copy rule walks through each step.

What it means for landlords

Ontario owners who relied on a manager remain the landlord under the Act, and the lease's name and notice address are what tenants and the Landlord and Tenant Board will use. If the address for notices was the manager's office, tenants have no working address once that office closes.

Until a landlord has met s.12, they "shall not require the tenant to pay rent" (s.12(4)(b)). Giving tenants written notice of your legal name and a current address for notices is the quickest way to restore an orderly rent relationship. Our Ontario Standard Lease guide for landlords covers what the form requires.

What to do now

• Read your lease. Find the landlord's legal name and the address for notices (section 1 and section 3 of the standard lease).
• Write to that address. Ask who the landlord is now and where rent should go, and keep a dated copy.
• Keep records of every payment. Receipts, e-transfer confirmations and bank statements show what you paid and to whom.
• Set aside any rent you withhold. Under s.12(5) it becomes payable once the landlord complies.
• Look up the owner. Ontario's land registry holds the official records of property ownership, and anyone can search it through OnLand for a fee. ServiceOntario says it cannot search or explain records for you.

More tenant guides are in the Ontario Tenant Resource Center, and landlord guides are in the Ontario Landlord Resource Center.