Is the first listing really free?

Yes. Sign up, list your first property, and reach Canadian renters at zero cost. No credit card required to start.

What does it cost after the first listing?

Standard plan is $19.99 for 45 days. Includes 3 listings, the full digital leasing module (lease, e-signature, inspections, rent tracking, T776), and tenant screening at cost. Featured is $29.99 for priority placement.

Do I have to sign a contract?

No. There are no contracts. Plans renew every 45 days; cancel anytime from your dashboard with one click.

Which provinces does SQRFT support?

All 9 English-speaking provinces. Alberta, Ontario, and BC have province-specific lawyer-reviewed lease templates; Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI, and Newfoundland & Labrador use a Canada-wide template that adapts to your provincial RTA. Quebec (Civil Code / TAL) is on the roadmap.

Is tenant screening included?

The screening module is included in your subscription. Individual reports (credit, criminal, identity) are pay-per-check at provider cost, typically cheaper than buying them separately.

What if a tenant disputes the deposit at the tribunal?

Every inspection, lease, payment, and notice you create on SQRFT is timestamped and signed. Pull the audit trail from your Document Vault and submit as evidence. Admissible at AB RTDRS, ON LTB, BC RTB, and equivalent tribunals in other provinces.

Every lease, screening report, and inspection is encrypted with AES-256 before storage. We're PIPEDA compliant; screening reports are automatically purged after the legal retention window. Data centres are Canadian-hosted.

How is this different from Kijiji or Facebook Marketplace?

Free classifieds give you a listing, and 50 scam replies. SQRFT gives you a verified renter audience, a built-in screening flow, a digital lease, an audit trail, and CRA-ready financials. End to end, in one platform.

I'm a property manager with 20+ doors, can SQRFT scale?

Yes. PM accounts include delegated property access, a team management dashboard, owner statements, and consolidated T776 across the entire portfolio. Contact us for volume pricing above 50 doors.

How to spot rental scams in Alberta

Rental scams in Alberta typically follow predictable patterns. Watch for these red flags: The landlord refuses an in-person showing or claims to be out of country. Real Alberta landlords let you walk through the property before signing anything. If they ask for a deposit, application fee, or first month's rent before you've seen the unit in person or via verified video call, walk away. Listings priced 30%+ below the local market are almost always fake. Check rent.ca, Rentals.ca, or SQRFT's rent estimator to confirm the average for that neighbourhood in Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer, or Lethbridge. If it's drastically cheaper, it's bait. Reverse-image search the listing photos using Google Lens or TinEye. Scammers copy real listings from MLS, Realtor.ca, or US sites and re-post with their own contact info. If the same photos appear on other sites with different landlord names, it's a scam. Never wire-transfer money, send Interac e-Transfer to an unverified email, or pay in cryptocurrency. Legitimate Alberta landlords accept cheques, e-Transfer to a verified Canadian bank, or in-person cash with a written receipt. Verify the landlord owns the property by checking the Alberta Land Titles registry (SPIN2). The property title shows the registered owner. Use platforms with verified landlord profiles like SQRFT, where landlord identity is confirmed at signup, listings link to verified properties, and dispute support follows the Alberta Residential Tenancies Act.

How to spot rental scams in Toronto

Toronto's tight rental market and high prices make it Canada's top target for rental scams. Apply these checks to any Toronto listing: Demand to view the unit in person before paying anything. The most common Toronto scam involves a "landlord" who's "currently out of country" and asks you to e-Transfer first month's rent + deposit to "hold the unit." Once you pay, they disappear. No legitimate Toronto landlord operates this way. Cross-check the listing on the Toronto MPAC property registry to confirm the listed address exists and matches the building described. Fraudsters often invent addresses or use real ones they don't own. Beware of "sublet" listings during peak rental months (April-September, plus August-September student rush). Many sublet scams ask for the full lease term's rent up front. Real sublets only collect month-to-month after viewing. Reverse-image search photos using Google Lens. Toronto rental scam photos are frequently stolen from Realtor.ca for-sale listings, US apartment listings, or even Airbnb. Run two or three photos through Google Lens before contacting. Be skeptical of "no credit check" or "no references" offers. Toronto's Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) allows landlords to request credit checks, references, and proof of income. Any landlord skipping screening is either inexperienced or running a scam. Stick to verified platforms (SQRFT, Rentals.ca with verified listings, or PadMapper) over Kijiji and Facebook Marketplace where scam rates are highest. If you must use classifieds, never pay until you have a signed lease and a viewing.

Renting vs buying in Canada in 2026

The 2026 rent-vs-buy decision depends on three numbers: your down payment, the mortgage rate you qualify for after the stress test, and how long you plan to stay. If you have less than 20% down, you'll need CMHC mortgage insurance (added to your loan), and your monthly payment will be substantially higher than renting an equivalent unit in most Canadian cities. The Bank of Canada stress test (mortgage rate + 2% OR the qualifying rate of 5.25%, whichever is higher) reduces your borrowing power by roughly 20-25%, which means you may qualify for a smaller home than your gross income suggests. The 5% rule is a useful sanity check: annual cost of ownership (mortgage interest + property tax + maintenance + insurance + opportunity cost on your down payment) is typically 5% of property value per year. If your rent is less than 5% of the home's purchase price annually, renting is mathematically cheaper. In Toronto and Vancouver, this often favours renting. In Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, and Halifax, the math more often favours buying. You also need to plan for break-even. Realtor commissions, land transfer tax (~2% in Ontario, 1-2% in BC, varies by province), legal fees, moving costs, and minor renovations typically add 5-7% to your purchase cost. To break even on these transaction costs, you generally need to own for 5+ years. Buying makes sense if: you'll stay 5+ years, you have stable income, the local rent-vs-buy ratio favours owning, and you have a 20%+ down payment. Renting makes sense if: you may relocate, the local market is overpriced, you'd rather invest the down payment in indexed equities, or you value the flexibility. For 2026 specifically, watch the Bank of Canada policy rate. Mortgage rates respond to overnight rate movements with a lag. If you're house-hunting, get pre-approved with a 120-day rate hold to lock in current pricing.

Moving from Toronto to Calgary

Moving from Toronto to Calgary in 2026 is one of the most cost-effective interprovincial moves in Canada. Here's what changes: Housing: Calgary average 1-bedroom rent is roughly 40-50% lower than Toronto. A $2,800/month Toronto 1-bedroom downtown unit translates to roughly $1,400-1,700 in equivalent Calgary neighbourhoods (Beltline, Mission, Kensington, Bridgeland). Two-bedroom and three-bedroom differentials are similar or larger. Income tax: Alberta has the lowest combined federal-provincial income tax rate in Canada and no provincial sales tax. A $90,000 Ontario salary keeps roughly $2,000-3,000 more per year in Alberta after-tax. Combined with the housing savings, the after-tax disposable income difference is substantial. Climate: Calgary winters are colder than Toronto on average but drier with more sun. Chinook winds bring sudden 20°C warm-ups mid-winter. Summers are warm but shorter. UV is intense year-round at the elevation, plan sunscreen accordingly. Transit: Calgary's CTrain LRT serves downtown and major suburbs, but coverage is thinner than Toronto's TTC. Most Calgary residents drive. Budget for a vehicle if you'll live in suburbs (Cranston, Mahogany, Tuscany, Evanston). Job market: Energy, technology, and healthcare dominate Calgary's job market. Tech salaries lag Toronto by 10-20% in dollars but the lower cost of living usually nets ahead. Major employers include Shaw/Rogers, Suncor, Cenovus, Imperial Oil, AltaLink, AHS, and a growing tech sector (Benevity, Symend, Neo Financial). Finding a rental remote: Use SQRFT or similar platforms with verified landlord identity. Request video walkthroughs before signing. Most reputable Calgary landlords accommodate video tours for out-of-province applicants. Plan to view in person before signing a 12-month lease if possible. Healthcare: Apply for an Alberta Health Care card immediately on arrival; coverage starts on the first of the third month after registration. Until then your Ontario OHIP coverage continues for emergency care only.

Landlord guide to listing rentals online

A high-converting rental listing follows a predictable formula. Here's the complete process: Photography matters more than copy. Shoot landscape orientation, midday natural light, every room from a corner showing two walls (not one wall flat-on). Aim for 12-20 photos minimum: living room, kitchen (open + closed cabinets), each bedroom, each bathroom, dining area, entryway, balcony/yard, parking, building exterior, building amenities, mailbox area. Wide-angle lens (16-24mm equivalent) helps small rooms feel larger without distortion. Edit for brightness and white balance. Headline writing: lead with the strongest feature. "Renovated 2BR + Den, Walking Distance to LRT" beats "Beautiful Apartment for Rent." Include bedrooms, neighbourhood, and one differentiator. Description structure: 3-4 short paragraphs. Paragraph 1: the unit (square footage, bedrooms, bathrooms, key features). Paragraph 2: building amenities (parking, gym, laundry, storage, balcony). Paragraph 3: location and transit (closest LRT/transit stop, walking distance to groceries, schools). Paragraph 4: rental terms (start date, lease length, pet policy, utilities included, move-in requirements). Bullet points are scanned more than prose; use them for amenities and policies. Pricing strategy: list at 95% of comparable nearby units. Slight underpricing creates competition between applicants and lets you choose the strongest one. Use Rentometer, Bullpen Research, or SQRFT's rent estimator to benchmark. Required by Alberta RTA (and equivalent in other provinces): you must disclose the security deposit amount, whether utilities are included, smoking policy, pet policy, and the term length. Some provinces require additional disclosures (Ontario's RTA Schedule of Tenancy Information, BC's Form RTB-1). Screening process: use a structured application form requesting employment income proof, credit authorization, two references, and government photo ID. Run credit + identity checks through a service like Equifax, TransUnion, SingleKey, or Certn (around $35-45 per applicant). Verify employment by contacting the employer directly. Showing scheduling: batch showings into one-hour blocks where multiple applicants view at once. This signals demand and creates urgency without dishonesty. Platforms: list on SQRFT plus 1-2 other channels (Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji) for reach. Verified platforms convert higher-quality tenants; classifieds reach volume but include more time-wasters. Track which platform delivers your tenant for next time.

What do I need to rent an apartment in Toronto

Toronto landlords typically require a complete rental application package before approving you. Have these ready before you start viewing: Government-issued photo ID: Ontario driver's licence, passport, or PR card. Most landlords also accept your country's passport if you're new to Canada. Proof of income: pay stubs from the last 2-3 months, or a recent employment letter on company letterhead stating your position, start date, gross annual salary, and employment status (permanent vs contract). Self-employed applicants should have recent Notice of Assessment (T1 General) plus 3 months of business bank statements. The standard rule: gross monthly income should be at least 3x the monthly rent. Credit check authorization: the landlord runs a credit check through Equifax or TransUnion. New immigrants without Canadian credit history should be ready to offer a co-signer (preferably a Canadian citizen or PR with established credit), or 3-6 months rent paid in advance (some landlords accept this). References: two minimum. Best combination is previous landlord + current employer. If you're a first-time renter, substitute with employer + character reference (professor, mentor). Provide phone numbers, not just emails. First and last month's rent: Ontario law caps the rent deposit at one month's rent (the "last month rent" deposit per s.105 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006). Damage deposits and pet deposits are PROHIBITED in Ontario. Be skeptical of any landlord asking for them. Application fee: Ontario landlords cannot charge a "rental application fee" (some try; this is not legal). They can charge for the actual credit check (typically $25-50, billed at cost). Co-signer (if applicable): newcomers, students, and applicants with limited Canadian credit often need a co-signer. The co-signer agrees to cover rent if you default; they must qualify based on the same 3x income rule. Lease term: standard Ontario lease is 12 months on the LTB-mandated Standard Form Lease (Form 2229E). Some landlords offer month-to-month after the first year; others require a fresh 12-month renewal. Move-in inspection: insist on a written move-in condition report signed by both parties with photos timestamped at move-in. This protects your last-month-rent deposit at move-out by documenting pre-existing damage.

Built for Canadian Landlords

Canadian Landlords Are
Switching to SQRFT.

First listing free. Coast-to-coast. Province-aware leases. Know your tenant before the showing.

How it works

No contracts · No credit card to start · Cancel anytime

9 provinces

Coast to coast

$0

First listing

2 min

Time to live

By The Numbers

Why Canadian landlords pick SQRFT

9 provinces

Province-aware leases. Every RTA, one platform

$0

Cost of your first property listing on SQRFT

2 min

Average time from sign-up to live listing

AES-256

Bank-grade encryption on every signed lease and screening report

Sound Familiar?

You don't need another classified site.
You need a system that protects you.

Kijiji scams + 50 spam replies

You can't tell a real renter from a bot. Most listings on free sites get more scams than leads.

Tenant ghosts after the showing

No background check. No credit history. You're handing the keys based on a 15-minute first impression.

Tribunal hearing without proof

When a dispute reaches RTDRS, you need timestamped photos, signed paperwork, and a clean audit trail. Most landlords have none of it.

Listing to Leasing

Three steps. One platform.

From the first photo to the last rent payment, every step is in your dashboard.

Step 1

List in under 2 minutes

Pick property type, drop in photos, set rent. Your listing goes live to Canadian renters from Vancouver Island to St. John's, and every city in between.

Step 2

Know your tenant before the showing

Built-in application + screening. Credit, criminal, identity, and rental history, all in a plain-language verdict. Decline politely, advance the strongest applicant.

Step 3

From lease to T776, all here

Province-aware digital lease (AB / ON / BC and growing), e-signature, move-in inspection with photos, rent auto-tracking, maintenance ledger, one-click CRA T776 export.

Who SQRFT is for

Whatever you rent out, we've built for it.

From a single condo unit to a 6-door multi-family, SQRFT handles every Canadian rental scenario.

Single-family homes

Detached, semi, townhouse. Photo-rich listings, neighbourhood search, RTA-correct leases tailored to the province your property is in.

Condos & apartments

Building amenities, parking, locker, condo board rules. Multi-photo galleries with floor plans and virtual tours. Built for condo boards and individual investors alike.

Basement suites & secondary

Legal secondary suites need extra paperwork. SQRFT auto-flags zoning concerns, safety requirements (smoke/CO detector confirmation), and walk-up vs walk-down listings.

Small multi-unit (2-8 doors)

Manage rent rolls across a small portfolio. One dashboard, all leases, all payment histories. T776 export aggregates the whole portfolio.

Provincial Lease Templates

Province-aware lease templates. One platform.

Every province has its own Residential Tenancies Act with its own rules on deposits, notice periods, and rent-increase limits. SQRFT's lease wizard reads your property's province and applies the right rules automatically. Alberta's lawyer-reviewed template is live today; other provinces roll out monthly.

Alberta

Available

Residential Tenancies Act (Alberta)

Ontario

Coming soon

Form 2229E Standard Lease

British Columbia

Coming soon

Residential Tenancy Act (BC)

Manitoba

Coming soon

Residential Tenancies Act (MB)

Saskatchewan

Coming soon

Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (SK)

Nova Scotia

Coming soon

Residential Tenancies Act (NS)

New Brunswick

Coming soon

Residential Tenancies Act (NB)

PEI

Coming soon

Residential Tenancy Act (PEI)

Newfoundland & Labrador

Coming soon

Residential Tenancies Act (NL)

⚡ List in Under 2 Minutes

Your listing goes live to Canadian renters today.

No fees. No contracts. Renters from coast to coast are searching right now.

Free forever for your first listing. No card required.

Compare

SQRFT vs. Kijiji / Facebook Marketplace

Free classifieds give you a listing, and 50 scam replies. SQRFT gives you a system.

Feature	SQRFT	Free classifieds
Renter audience	Canadian rental marketplace	Mixed classifieds
Listing cost	First free, then $19.99	Free (with scam risk)
Tenant screening
Province-aware digital lease
E-signature with audit trail
Move-in inspection app
Rent auto-tracking
T776 tax export
Tribunal-admissible audit trail
Scam / bot filtering
PIPEDA-compliant data handling

Pricing

First listing free. Always.

Need more? Standard or Featured plans add unlimited features. Cancel anytime.

Launch

$0

First listing free

Coast-to-coast reach

Quick answers

Rental Resources

Canadian rental guides

Practical, citation-quality answers to the questions Canadian renters and landlords ask most. Updated for 2026.

These guides are written by Canadian rental professionals and updated as provincial Residential Tenancies Acts change. For specific legal questions consult a lawyer or your provincial tenancy tribunal.

Join sqrft.ca

List today.
Leased by next week.

Your first listing is on us. Reach Canadian renters, screen with confidence, and lease without the paperwork chaos. Coast to coast, every province, every RTA.

No fees · No contracts · Built in Canada · Cancel anytime

Canadian Landlords AreSwitching to SQRFT.

Why Canadian landlords pick SQRFT

You don't need another classified site.You need a system that protects you.

Kijiji scams + 50 spam replies

Tenant ghosts after the showing

Tribunal hearing without proof

Three steps. One platform.

List in under 2 minutes

Know your tenant before the showing

From lease to T776, all here

Whatever you rent out, we've built for it.

Single-family homes

Condos & apartments

Basement suites & secondary

Small multi-unit (2-8 doors)

Province-aware lease templates. One platform.

Alberta

Ontario

British Columbia

Manitoba

Saskatchewan

Nova Scotia

New Brunswick

PEI

Newfoundland & Labrador

Your listing goes live to Canadian renters today.

SQRFT vs. Kijiji / Facebook Marketplace

First listing free. Always.

Quick answers

Canadian rental guides

How to spot rental scams in Alberta

How to spot rental scams in Toronto

Renting vs buying in Canada in 2026

Moving from Toronto to Calgary

Landlord guide to listing rentals online

What do I need to rent an apartment in Toronto

List today.Leased by next week.

Canadian Landlords Are
Switching to SQRFT.

You don't need another classified site.
You need a system that protects you.

List today.
Leased by next week.