Renting in Sarnia in 2026

Sarnia is a city of 72,047 residents as of the 2021 Census, up slightly from 71,594 in 2016. It's a lower-tier municipality within Lambton County — the largest of the county's municipalities by population, though the county seat is Wyoming, not Sarnia. The city sits at the southern tip of Lake Huron on the St. Clair River, directly across from Port Huron, Michigan, and about an hour and a quarter east of London.

Sarnia is best known for "Chemical Valley," Canada's largest concentration of petrochemical plants, anchored within the city by Imperial Oil's and Suncor's refineries, with NOVA Chemicals' and Shell's major plants just south in neighbouring St. Clair Township. The Blue Water Bridge crossing to Michigan lands in the adjacent village of Point Edward rather than Sarnia proper, but the crossing, Bluewater Health, and Lambton College all anchor steady rental demand in a city that combines industrial employment with Lake Huron waterfront living.

The local economy runs on the following:

• •
  Imperial Oil — Sarnia refinery, operating in the area 125+ years, roughly 700 employees
• •
  Suncor — Sarnia Refinery, part of the "Chemical Valley" industrial region within the city
• •
  Bluewater Health — the region's largest public-sector employer, roughly 1,800 staff and physicians
• •
  Lambton College — main campus on London Road
• •
  NOVA Chemicals and Shell operate major petrochemical plants just south of Sarnia in neighbouring St. Clair Township (Corunna), not within Sarnia's own municipal boundary

• •
  Centennial Park and Sarnia Bay, including the Andrew S. Brandt Marina
• •
  Canatara Park — 174 acres including a Blue Flag-certified beach, one of only 27 in Canada
• •
  Blue Water Bridge — the Canadian span lands in the neighbouring village of Point Edward, not Sarnia itself
• •
  Chemical Valley — Canada's largest concentration of petrochemical plants, spanning Sarnia and adjacent St. Clair Township

Every rental in Sarnia is governed by the Ontario Residential Tenancies Act. Key rules that apply regardless of town size:

• •
  Rent increases are capped by the annual provincial guideline.Most existing tenancies can only be raised once every 12 months, up to that year's guideline percentage, with 90 days' written notice.
• •
  No separate damage deposit.Landlords may only collect last month's rent as a deposit; it cannot be used for damage.
• •
  Landlord entry requires 24 hours' written notice.For repairs, showings, or inspections.
• •
  Disputes go to the LTB.Ontario's Landlord and Tenant Board handles applications from both landlords and tenants.
• •
  No legally required move-in inspection report.A written move-in inspection is good practice but is not an Ontario RTA requirement.

Deep guides for each of these topics are in the SQRFT guide library.

• Statistics Canada 2021 Census Profile
• Lambton Kent District School Board
• St. Clair Catholic District School Board
• Ontario LTB