The video below is of the press conference held for the release of proposed Residential Tenancy Act amendments for public consultation. The press conference was Thursday, August 28, 2025, at 2:00 PM at 267 Stead Road, New Glasgow(Wheatley River). Thank you to Thamara Paparoni DeVries (property owner) and June Ellis (Executive Director of the Residential Rental Association of PEI) for your participation. Also, thank you Adam MacKenzie and Anne Zakem for your help.
Executive Summary
The vacancy rate in Prince Edward Island continues to be low, and was reported by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation to be 0.8% in December, 2024. At the same time the construction industry has responded with record-breaking activity, including 1,684 housing starts in 2024. The rent for new rental units added to the market can be set at whatever the landlord sees fit.
For existing rental units, the Residential Tenancy Act legislation on PEI enacts strict rent controls. Each year the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission determines the allowable rent increase, and this is capped at 3% by the Act. This is even true for vacant rental units – the rent cannot be increased by more than the allowable amount between tenants; these rules are know as vacancy controls. There is a process for landlords to apply for a greater than allowable rent increase, and it is also capped at 3% by the Act. This means any rental unit – occupied or vacant – might have a maximum rent increast of 6% in any given year.
This has created a two-tier set of residential rentals on PEI: newer rental units with higher rents that are less affordable, and older rental units with lower rents that are very affordable. Given the large increases in expenses such as property taxes, insurance, maintenance and repairs, the rent increases for many older units make them unviable as a business for landlords. Since the rent cannot be increased to make the rentals viable, many of the most affordable rental units are being taken off the rental market – e.g. converted in condominiums or sold for other purposes. Those affordable units that are left on the market receive only the maintenance and repairs that landlords can afford – often meaning the quality degrades.
The main purpose of the proposed amendments is to keep affordable rental units on the market by allowing reasonable rent increases. Also, in general, the proposed amendments aim to create a better balance between tenant and landlord priorities, ensuring sustainable and affordable rental housing into the future.
The comprehensive set of proposed amendments to the Residential Tenancy Act and the Residential Tenancy Act Regulations can be downloaded as a PDF here:
Proposed Amendments – Residential Tenancy Act – ALL v15
The proposed amendments have been prepared by consulting with stakeholders, and are based on real-life examples of issues that have occurred. Please find the Executive Summary of the changes below. As the public consultation continues, the proposed amendments will be updated accordingly with the feedback received. The goal is to bring multiple Private Members Bills to the floor of the PEI Legislative Assembly this fall.
This document outlines comprehensive reforms to Prince Edward Island’s Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) aimed at improving fairness, transparency, and efficiency in the rental housing system. The amendments respond to stakeholder concerns and policy gaps identified through consultations and case law. Key Reforms Include:
Governance and Dispute Resolution
- New Independent Body: Establishes the Office of Residential Tenancy Services (ORTS) to handle tenancy administration, with separate, independent Tenant and Landlord Advisor Offices to improve access to justice. The Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission (IRAC) will retain its role as the appeal body.
- Efficient Appeals: Grants IRAC new authority to summarily dismiss appeals that are frivolous, vexatious, or without merit to reduce delays and procedural abuse.
Rent and Financial Framework
- Unified Rent Increase Formula: Consolidates all greater-than-allowable rent increase provisions into a single, transparent section. It establishes a clear, evidence-based formula to calculate justified increases based on capital expenditures and extraordinary increases in property taxes or insurance.
- Flexible Implementation: Balances landlord viability and tenant stability by phasing in approved increases for occupied units while allowing the full approved amount to be applied when a unit becomes voluntarily vacant.
- Confidentiality and Deposits: Enhances confidentiality protections for landlord financial data submitted in rent increase applications and prioritizes the use of security deposits for property damage over unpaid rent.
Tenancy Management and Evictions
- Balanced Eviction Rules: Reforms “personal use” evictions with tiered notice periods (two months for single-unit landlords) and makes compensation conditional on the length of tenancy.
- Property Protection: Introduces clear legal consequences for tenants who willfully or negligently cause significant property damage, including liability for summary conviction fines. It also streamlines the enforcement of a landlord’s right to inspect a property.
- Stronger Enforcement: Defines “repeatedly late” rent as three late payments in 12 months and creates a new framework for enforcing payment orders, including the potential for wage garnishment and penalties for unjustifiably breaking a lease.
- Lease and Showing Rules: Allows landlords to propose reasonable changes to a lease when a fixed term converts to a month-to-month tenancy. It also requires tenants to temporarily vacate a unit for a short, pre-arranged period for real estate showings.
Modernization and Other Key Improvements
- Heating Conversions: Removes barriers to facilitate the conversion of heating systems from oil to more efficient options like heat pumps.
- Pet-Friendly Housing: Encourages more pet-friendly units by introducing an optional pet damage deposit of up to one-half month’s rent.
- Abandoned Property: Shifts the responsibility for managing a tenant’s abandoned personal property from the landlord to the Director of Residential Tenancy, streamlining a complex and burdensome process.
