The Rental Apartment Buildings By-law (the “by-law”) requires the annual registration of all purpose-built rental buildings that contain two or more storeys and six or more residential units that share a common area.
Failure to register an apartment building is an offence under the by-law, which upon conviction carries a maximum penalty of $100,000.
By-law requirements
Once registered, building owners must ensure apartment buildings meet a series of minimum standards and practices pertaining to:
- Tenant service request processes
- Waste management planning
- Cleaning
- State of good repair planning
- Electrical maintenance planning
- Vital services disruption planning
- Tenant assistance documentation
- Tenant notification boards
- Preventative pest management inspection practices
- Use of certified tradespersons
- Record-keeping
To better understand the key by-law requirements, review the Apartment Building Owner’s Reference Guide.
Evaluation process
By-law requirements are enforced through regular building inspections. Inspections occur at least once every three years. The City will contact owners to schedule the building inspections.
Each apartment building will be inspected and assigned a score based on:
- The state of repair
- Cleanliness
- Pest management
- Compliance with all applicable standards
The evaluation score will be used to determine the frequency of future inspections. Building owners may be ordered to undertake necessary repairs if deficiencies are documented during an evaluation. This is to ensure the property is maintained in compliance with all applicable laws.
Residents of registered apartment buildings can submit complaints to the City if their complaints have not been resolved by the owner or property manager.
Residents can make complaints involving:
- External common areas
- Internal common areas
- Their residential units
Once a complaint has been submitted, a service request will be generated and assigned to an officer. We may need to contact you for additional details and encourage you to provide your contact information.
Your contact information will be kept confidential. However, if you wish to remain anonymous, you can submit an anonymous complaint.
How to register
1. Complete the registration form
Download and complete the Apartment Building Registration Form.
2. Submit the registration form and fees
Submit your registration form and cheque payable to the City of Mississauga. You can choose to either book an in-person appointment or mail your form and cheque to:
ATTN: City of Mississauga MARC Program
Compliance and Licensing Enforcement
300 City Centre Drive, Ground Floor
Mississauga, ON L5B 3C1
In 2022, owners of rental apartment buildings are required to pay an annual registration fee of $18.25 per residential unit. The renewal fee will vary annually.
Once the registration is processed, we will email a certificate to the address provided in the registration form.
3. Renew your registration annually
For the pilot program’s duration, owners will be required to renew their registration. The City will notify owners to renew their registration on or before July 31 each year. The notice will include the applicable renewal fee.
What happens next
Once the building owners receive the registration certificate, they must post it in an area of the apartment building that is visible to tenants and prospective tenants.
After registration, building owners must create and implement all the plans required by the by-law.