How do you sublet an apartment?

Yes, but in most provinces only for a good reason. Alberta requires reasonable grounds given in writing within 14 days, and Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, PEI, Newfoundland and Labrador and New Brunswick say consent cannot be unreasonably withheld; in British Columbia that protection applies when 6 or more months are left on a fixed term. There are exceptions: Saskatchewan public housing authorities may refuse on any grounds, an Ontario landlord can refuse an assignment outright (the tenant can then end the tenancy), and a New Brunswick landlord can end the lease instead of consenting. If you think a refusal was unfair, contact your province's tenancy office, or in Ontario apply to the Landlord and Tenant Board.

No, not in most provinces: the law requires the landlord's consent first, and in New Brunswick the lease decides whether consent is needed. A sublet without consent is a breach that can end the tenancy. Saskatchewan and PEI treat it as a ground for a one-month notice, and Nova Scotia allows a notice to quit effective 15 days after it is given (30 days in a land-lease community). Ask first, in writing, and keep the landlord's answer.

Raise it with the tenant in writing first and ask who is living in the unit, because a tenant who asks properly is entitled to a fair answer. If the breach continues, the remedy depends on the province: at least 14 days' notice for an unauthorized occupant to leave in Alberta, a one-month notice for cause in Saskatchewan and PEI, or a Form E notice to quit in Nova Scotia. The tenant can dispute these notices (15 days in Saskatchewan, 10 days in PEI), so keep records. Never change the locks or remove anyone yourself; see how to evict a tenant for the legal process.

Whether renting out a room counts as a sublet or as taking in a roommate depends on the province and your lease. Ontario's standard lease says a landlord cannot stop a tenant from having a roommate as long as municipal occupancy standards are met, and PEI's Rental Office says a landlord cannot charge more rent because a new roommate moves in. Nova Scotia's standard lease allows only the named tenants and occupants to live in the unit without the landlord's written consent, and in Saskatchewan the rent can vary with the number of occupants if the lease says so. An unreasonable number of occupants is a ground to end a tenancy in Saskatchewan and PEI, so ask the landlord before someone moves in.

Ask the landlord about a sublet before you advertise, so you know the rules and any fee. Then post where renters already look, such as rental listing sites, local community and marketplace groups, and student housing boards near a college or university. Describe the dates, the rent and what is included, and say the landlord must approve the subtenant. Meet applicants and check references before you send a name to the landlord for consent.

Meet in person, see the unit and the lease, and confirm that the person offering the sublet is the tenant named on it. Ask to see the landlord's written consent, because a sublet the landlord never approved can lead to the tenancy being ended. Do not send a deposit or rent by wire transfer or gift card before you have seen the place and signed an agreement. Our guide on how to spot rental scams lists the warning signs.

Start from the rent you pay and what similar units nearby rent for; the SQRFT rent estimator gives a quick figure for any address. Nova Scotia sets a firm limit: a subtenant cannot be charged more rent than the landlord charges the tenant. Agree in writing on the rent, who pays the utilities and any furniture included, and remember the landlord will usually still look to you for the full rent.

Subletting and subleasing mean the same thing: someone else lives in your unit for a time while your tenancy continues, usually with you still responsible to the landlord. Assigning is different, because the new person takes over the lease and the tenancy. Most provinces apply the same consent rules to both. A written sublease should set the dates, the rent and how the subtenant pays you.

The original tenancy continues, and the original tenant usually stays responsible to the landlord for the rent and the condition of the unit. If the subtenant misses rent or damages the unit, the landlord will usually look to you. A written sublet agreement and a record of the unit's condition at the start protect you; in Manitoba either side can ask for a condition report at the time of the sublet.

Put the end date in the written sublet agreement and give a copy to the landlord with your consent request. In British Columbia a sublease agreement is one of only two cases where a fixed-term agreement can include a vacate clause, so the subtenant must move out at the end of the term. If a subtenant will not leave on the end date, contact your province's tenancy office for the right process and do not change the locks or remove their things yourself. See what to do if a tenant refuses to move out for how removal works.

In most provinces the law sets the test: the landlord must give consent unless there is a good reason to refuse. New Brunswick is different, because a lease there can forbid assignment. In Ontario, superintendents and tenants in subsidized or certain student housing have no right to assign, and Saskatchewan public housing authorities may refuse on any grounds.

A lease takeover is another name for an assignment: someone new takes over your tenancy, usually because you are leaving for good, instead of you keeping the lease as you would in a sublet. In Ontario you need the landlord's approval, and the Landlord and Tenant Board's guide says the landlord must have a good reason for refusing. If the landlord refuses an assignment, or does not reply within 7 days, you can end the tenancy with an N9 giving at least 30 days' notice (28 days for a daily or weekly tenancy), given within 30 days of your request. If you think a refusal was unjustified, you can apply to the Board. Superintendents and tenants in subsidized or certain student housing may have no right to assign.

It depends on whether the landlord agreed to the sublet. Where the landlord consented, Nova Scotia's Act counts an approved subtenant as a tenant, and in Manitoba, if the landlord shows it accepts an occupant who took over without following the consent rules, the transfer is treated as valid from the time the subtenant moved in. We found no rule in the material we reviewed that lets a landlord end a consented sublet just because it is a sublet.

Without consent, the landlord can act on the breach. In Saskatchewan and PEI an unauthorized sublet is a ground for a notice that takes effect not earlier than one month after it is received (the tenant can dispute it within 15 days in Saskatchewan and 10 days in PEI), and in Nova Scotia a sublet without consent allows a Form E notice to quit that takes effect not earlier than 15 days after it is given. In Alberta the Act lets a landlord give a person who is not a tenant, but is living in a tenant's premises, a notice to vacate of at least 14 days and apply to court if they stay; the sources we reviewed do not say how that applies to a subtenant, so ask the RTDRS or the court. SQRFT advice: get the landlord's consent in writing before anyone moves in, and see how to evict a tenant.