How much can a new landlord raise the rent?

Alberta's definition of a landlord includes the owner's successors in title, so a buyer steps into the landlord's place. The buyer also takes over the security deposit and must refund it at the end of the tenancy even if the seller never handed it over.

Alberta does not limit how much rent can go up, but an increase needs 365 days since the start of the tenancy or the last increase, whichever is later, and 3 full tenancy months' written notice. We found nothing in the Act or the regulation that restarts the 365 days when the owner changes, but neither the Act nor the government guides address a sale in plain words on this point, so check the Alberta government tenancy information in the sources below if a new owner sends a notice sooner than you expected. Rent cannot go up during a fixed-term lease.

A sale is not one of the ways a BC tenancy ends, so your tenancy, rent and deposits carry over to the buyer. The regulation is clear on timing: rent can go up only 12 months after it was set or after the last legal increase, even if there is a new landlord.

Any increase is capped at 2.3% for 2026 and 2.2% for 2027 and needs three full months' notice on form RTB-7. To go higher, the new owner needs your written agreement or an arbitrator's order, and you do not have to agree. If the buyer wants to live in the unit, the seller can give a Three Month Notice for Purchaser's Use, which you have 21 days to dispute.

When the landlord changes, every obligation under the Act and under a written tenancy agreement binds the new landlord, including a deposit the old landlord did not pass on. The new landlord must tell you in writing on the prescribed form, and until then you can keep paying rent to the old landlord.

The guideline is 1.8% for 2026 and 3.0% for 2027, with 3 months' notice, and rent can go up only once in any 12-month period. The Act ties that 12-month rule to the rent charged for the unit rather than to the owner, but it does not say in words what a sale does to the timing, so ask the Residential Tenancies Branch if a new owner sends a notice sooner than you expected. Units renting for $1,670 or more a month in 2026 ($2,000 or more in 2027), units in buildings first occupied after March 2005 during their first 20 years, and social housing are outside the guideline.

A new owner is substituted into your existing tenancy agreement as if it had signed it with you, with the same rights and duties as the old landlord, and your deposit and its interest pass to the new owner. The existing rent and lease terms carry on.

Saskatchewan does not limit how much rent can go up, but most landlords must give 12 months' written notice and wait 18 months from the start of the tenancy for the first increase. A fixed-term lease can include an increase only if the amount and timing were agreed when it was signed. The Act does not say in words whether a sale restarts the waiting period, so contact the Office of Residential Tenancies if a new owner sends a notice sooner than you expected.

Your tenancy continues with the new owner on the same terms. The 12-month wait runs from the last increase for you in your unit, not from the date of sale, and the new owner must give at least 90 days' written notice on the proper form, usually the N1. The increase cannot be more than the guideline, 2.1% for 2026 and 1.9% for 2027, unless the unit is exempt.

Most units first occupied for residential purposes after November 15, 2018 are not covered by the guideline. A new owner cannot ask for a new last month's rent deposit if you already paid one to the previous landlord.

A buyer takes on all of the landlord's obligations and is a landlord for every purpose of the Act. The province says the terms of a lease stay the same no matter who owns the property. The seller must notify the tenancy office and you on Form 8 within seven days of the transfer, and the deposit is transferred to the new owner.

The new owner is bound by the same increase rules: a 3% cap, six months' written notice, and no more than one increase in any 12 months, with none in the first 12 months of the tenancy unless you and the landlord agree otherwise in writing. No source we found says whether an increase by the previous owner counts toward those 12 months. If you are unsure how an increase by the previous owner affects the timing, ask the Tenant and Landlord Relations Office.

Nova Scotia's definition of a landlord includes the landlord's assigns, your deposit is treated as transferred to the new landlord, and the province says the trust account stays with the property. The rent increase rules apply to any landlord: no increase in the 12 months after the lease begins, no more than one in any 12 months, on the tenancy's anniversary date, with 4 months' written notice for a monthly or yearly lease.

Increases for existing tenants are capped at 5% through 2027; the cap law ends after December 31, 2027. No government page says in words how a sale affects the timing, so check with Residential Tenancies if a new owner sends a notice sooner than you expected.

In PEI the landlord's obligations run with the rental unit, not the tenant, and your deposit passes to the new owner. The new landlord must give you written notice of their name and contact details and of the deposit and interest they hold.

The 12 months between increases count from the last lawful increase, and we found nothing in the Act that resets them on a sale. The allowable increase is 2% for 2026 and 2.1% for 2027, with 3 months' notice on Form 8. If a new owner applies for more than the allowable amount, the Director may consider that buying a property should not require a rent increase within the first year.

A buyer becomes your landlord and must keep the same terms and conditions as the previous landlord, and a sale does not allow shorter notice to end your tenancy. The new landlord must immediately give you written notice of their name and address and the deposit they hold. The province notes that a foreclosure may be an exception to the rule that the agreement continues.

Newfoundland and Labrador does not limit how much rent can go up, but an increase needs 6 months' notice for a monthly or fixed-term tenancy, on the Landlord's Notice to Increase Rent. Rent can go up only once in any 12 months, not in the first 12 months of the agreement, and not during a fixed term.