The City of Kitchener’s new Lodging House Bylaw is in effect as of January 1, 2025. The bylaw aims to improve the City’s ability to ensure public safety, consumer protection, and nuisance control while also reducing barriers for property owners.
To make it easier for lodging house owners to apply for and receive a license, the City has reduced licensing fees, and created an online portal for license applications. Printed application forms are also available and can be picked up at City Hall.
The key changes include more robust licensing requirements and enhanced property maintenance measures. Another key change is enhanced safety measures including:
- mandatory inspections
- advertising requirements
- implementation of a Lodging House Handbook
- implementation of a ‘Dedicated Responsible Person’
The bylaw defines a lodging house as a dwelling unit where five or more persons, not including a resident owner of the property, may rent a lodging unit and where the kitchen and other areas of the dwelling unit are shared amongst the persons occupying the dwelling unit. A lodging unit is defined as a room or set of rooms located in a lodging house or other dwelling designed or intended to be used for sleeping and living accommodations which:
- is designed for the exclusive use of the resident or residents of the unit;
- is not normally accessible to persons other than the residents or residents of the unit; and,
- does not have a bathroom and a kitchen for the exclusive use of the resident or residents of the unit.
Learn more about the new bylaw, licensing requirements and supports available for tenants and renters by visiting: www.kitchener.ca/LodgingHouses