Restricting Holiday Decorations:

Question: Can a landlord in Ontario stop you from installing Christmas or other seasonal religious decorations in your rental unit if they say it’s for safety or damage reasons?

Answer: If you are a tenant in Ontario, Case in Point Paralegal Services can help you understand when a landlord may restrict seasonal or religious holiday decorations because of genuine safety risks or undue damage, based on the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 and in particular the tenant’s responsibility for repairing undue damage under Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17, s. 34 and potential termination for undue damage under Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17, s. 62(1)   and the tenant’s protections against a landlord unreasonably interfering with your reasonable enjoyment under Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 17, s. 22; in practical terms, you should ask for the exact concern, show safe installation steps (for example, proper mounting and not blocking exits), and respond promptly if the landlord claims damage or hazards, and a paralegal can help you draft a clear plan, communicate effectively, and explore next steps for your specific situation across Ontario, call (519) 318-7843 to get started.

Understanding the Limited Reasons to Restrict Installation of Seasonal Decorations Including Safety or Damage Concerns

Generally, a landlord must permit the installation of religious holiday decorations and displays by a tenant; however, where the decorations or display genuinely poses a safety risk or causes damage to the rental premises, a landlord may forbid the installation or require reasonable measures to reduce the safety risk and avoid property damage.

The Law

The Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, Chapter 17, is without explicit directives regarding seasonal holiday decorations such as Christmas lights, among other things; however, the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, contains various sections that are relevant to the safety concerns and the damage concerns of a landlord while also containing sections relevant to the rights of a tenant to enjoy the rental premises without unreasonable interference by the landlord.

The Residential Tenancies Act, 2006, at section 34, states that tenants may be liable for undue damage that is caused to the rental premise. Furthermore, section 62 states that tenants may be evicted for willfully or negligently damaging the rented premises.  Additionally, section 64 states that a tenant may be evicted for substantially interfering with a right, a privilege, or an interest, of the landlord, including conduct that creates safety hazards that pose significant liability risk to the landlord.  These sections explicitly state:

Despite the above concerns regarding decorations installed by a tenant, it is also important to bear in mind that section 22 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 forbids a landlord from unreasonably interfering with the reasonable enjoyment of the rental unit by the tenant.  In this respect, section 22 specifically states:

As detailed per the law shown above, although tenants may be forbidden from creating safety hazards that may cause injuries and correspondingly impose liability risk upon a landlord as well as forbidden from causing undue damage to the rental premises as property of the landlord, the landlord is also forbidden from interfering in the reasonable enjoyment rights of tenants.  As such, the law requires that the rights that protect the landlord from unreasonable risks must be balanced with the rights that reasonably permit tenants to install decorations.

Summary Comment

A landlord must permit a tenant to enjoy the rental unit, including allowing installation of holiday decorations such as lighting displays, among other things, so long as the tenant avoids creating safety hazards and refrains from damaging the rental premises.