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Housing

Renting in Alberta

​​​​​​​​​​​​​When you rent a place to live in Alberta you should expect that it will be a place where you and your family can make a safe and healthy home.

Apartments, rooming houses, and townhouses are some examples of units that may be rented as a place to make a home.

A safe and healthy place for you to live should meet all the conditions in the Minimum Housing and Health Standards.

Rental housing should have a:
  • place to prepare meals
  • sink with hot and cold running water
  • stove
  • refrigerator
  • counter or table
  • place for storing food

A washroom must have a:

  • hand sink with hot and cold running water
  • bathtub or shower
  • toilet

Kitchens and bathrooms may be shared, depending upon the type of housing premises.

There should be:
  • smoke alarms that work
  • a bedroom window that can be used as a fire escape (in buildings 3 storeys or less)
  • doors and windows that can be locked securely

You should have:
  • heat if it’s cold outside
  • plumbing and sewage that works
  • electricity

As a responsible tenant you should:

  • report problems to the landlord right away
  • let in people the landlord sends to do repairs
  • throw garbage out often and into approved cans or dumpsters
  • keep your suite clean so that rodent or insect pests such as mice and cockroaches don’t have a place to hide and multiply
  • make sure items you bring into your home are pest-free (e.g., from bed bugs)

Landlords are expected to keep their buildings clean and in good repair.

If something is broken or not working:

  1. call and ask your landlord to fix it
  2. give enough time for the repairs to be done

If the repairs aren’t done, you can call Alberta Health Services for help. You will be asked:

  • your name, phone number, and address
  • the landlord’s name and phone number
  • to describe the problem

Your name is not given to anyone after you call us. A Health Inspector/Environmental Health Officer will contact you to make an appointment for an inspection.

Current as of: January 25, 2018

Author: Environmental Public Health, Alberta Health Services