The Ontario N5 notice: a landlord's guide to interference, damage and overcrowding

01

When can you use an N5?

Under the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 (RTA), an N5 covers three situations. Each can involve the tenant, another occupant or someone the tenant lets in.

• Interference: conduct that substantially interferes with the reasonable enjoyment of the residential complex by you or another tenant, or with another lawful right, privilege or interest (s. 64).
• Damage: wilfully or negligently causing undue damage to the rental unit or the residential complex (s. 62). Normal wear and tear is not undue damage.
• Overcrowding: the number of people living in the unit on a continuing basis breaks health, safety or housing standards required by law (s. 67).

02

Is there a faster option than the N5?

Sometimes. The LTB's N5 instructions say you can use Form N7 instead for interference if you live in the same building and it has three or fewer residential units, or for damage you believe you can prove was wilful. An N7 cannot be voided and has a shorter notice period. If you are unsure whether you can prove the damage was deliberate, the LTB says to use the N5.

03

How do you fill out and serve a first N5?

1. Get the current N5 from the LTB website. Name all tenants (and any subtenant or assignee) and the full unit address.
2. Set the termination date at least 20 days after the date you give the notice. Don't count the day you give it. Add five days if you mail it, or one business day if you send it by courier.
3. Tick each reason that applies and mark the notice as your first N5 in the past six months.
4. Fill in the details section. Say who did what, the dates and times, what happened and who was affected. For damage, enter what it will cost you to repair or replace the property. For overcrowding, name the law or by-law and the maximum number of occupants it allows.
5. Spell out what the tenant must do to void the notice, then sign and date it.
6. Serve the notice in a permitted way: hand it to the tenant or an adult in the unit, put it in their mailbox or mail slot, slide it under the door, or send it by fax, courier or mail. Posting it on the door is not allowed.
7. Keep a copy and note how and when you served it, for the Certificate of Service.

04

How can the tenant void a first N5 within 7 days?

A first N5 gives the tenant seven days after receiving it to fix the problem. If they do, the notice is void, and you cannot apply to the LTB based on it.

• Interference: stop the conduct or activity, or correct the omission described in the notice.
• Damage: repair the damaged property, or pay you the reasonable cost of repairing it. If repair isn't reasonable, they can replace it or pay the replacement cost. Under s. 62(3), the notice is also void if the tenant makes arrangements you find satisfactory.
• Overcrowding: reduce the number of people living in the unit to the number the notice allows.

You cannot file during that seven-day remedy period (s. 70). If the problem hasn't been corrected, you can apply starting on the 8th day.

05

What happens with a second N5 within six months?

If a first N5 was given and, more than seven days but less than six months later, new conduct or a new situation gives grounds for termination, you can give a second N5 (s. 68). The termination date must be at least 14 days after you give it. A second N5 cannot be voided, so you can apply to the LTB as soon as you have given it.

06

When and how do you file the L2?

1. File Form L2 (Application to End a Tenancy and Evict a Tenant or Collect Money) once you are allowed to: on or after day 8 for an uncorrected first N5, or right away for a second N5.
2. File no later than 30 days after the termination date on your N5.
3. Attach a copy of the N5 and a Certificate of Service. For a second N5, also attach the earlier N5 and its Certificate of Service. The LTB will refuse the application if a required item is missing.
4. Pay the fee when you file: $201, or $186 through the Tribunals Ontario Portal.

07

What evidence helps at the hearing?

• A specific, dated account of each incident, including who was involved and who was affected.
• For damage, an itemized list with the cost of each repair or replacement. Estimates are fine if the work isn't done yet.
• For overcrowding, the name of the by-law or standard and the maximum occupancy it sets.
• Copies of your notices and Certificates of Service.

Give copies of your evidence to the tenant and to the LTB before the hearing. Your Notice of Hearing, or LTB Rule of Procedure 19, sets the disclosure deadline.