Being A Landlord Isn't Easy

Published November 2, 2012 · Updated October 21, 2026

There are a few misconceptions about landlords, especially ones who manage their own properties.

Being a landlord tends to call up one of two images: the Monopoly man building an empire of coloured properties, or a moustache-twisting slumlord living in luxury while others finance his way of life. Tell someone you're a landlord and there's probably a brief pause while they picture you nailing an eviction notice to some innocent person's door. Landlords get a bad rap.

The word comes from land rights, and through history it usually meant a wealthy or influential person with power over someone else's home. With a history like that, it's hard to convince anyone you're a good one.

I remember, while in university, hearing friends complain that their landlord was heartless because he said no to a six-day extension on their rent in the third month of the tenancy. They thought it was a more-than-reasonable request: they were giving him a whole day's notice that they needed another week! The landlord gave them a notice for non-payment and calmly told them they had 7 days to pay in full, and that if it happened again they'd need to leave.

The fact is that most landlords are not rich. They're regular people who decided to invest in real estate as a business, committing their time and money to the difficult work of managing property and keeping good relationships with their tenants. They've risked their savings, their credit and their sanity on a promise to repay the loan they took out to buy a property. They're responsible for upkeep, taxes, insurance, repairs and all the paperwork that comes with a home.

The buck stops with them, for everything, and the odds are stacked against them turning a profit.

Provincial laws in Canada generally favour tenants. If problems come up, like unpaid rent, damage or a disagreement, the idea that a landlord can just "throw a tenant out" couldn't be further from the truth, even when the tenant is completely in the wrong. Anyone who's been to a hearing at a provincial board can tell you that.

It's not an easy job. It's quite difficult. If you think being the round-the-clock contact for everything that goes wrong in someone's home is a piece of cake, I can tell you about my first year as a landlord: a basement apartment, a phone call from two Ottawa police officers at 3:30 in the morning, $8,000 of damage and 12 squatters in a unit whose tenant was on her way out.

So why do it?

Owning and managing property is usually a long-term exercise. It's often compared to running a marathon: there's a return, but it takes time and work. It comes with constant expenses, ongoing investment, a stomach for the ups and downs of the market, and a level of financial and legal exposure that can make you regret signing up. All of it governed by some of the most detailed rules you'll ever encounter.

It's not easy, and anyone who thinks it is hasn't done it. So the next time you meet a landlord, don't assume they're bathing in twenty-dollar bills and dreaming about evicting little old ladies. They're regular people with a hard job.

Originally published November 2, 2012, when Rentingwell was Rentingwell. We've removed links that no longer work and a number that had been added to this post without our permission.