RentSmart Certificate is a 12-hour course that covers the following:
- Tenant rights and responsibilities
- Landlord responsibilities and expectations
- Living with roommates, housemates and neighbours
- Effective communication skills
- Budgeting and planning for housing affordability and stability
- Maintenance do’s and don’ts
- Crisis management, safety and pests
Upon completion of the RentSmart Certificate course, participants earn the RentSmart Certificate of Completion. The certificate can act as a reference and lets landlords know that graduates have learned how to be a good tenant.
The benefits of the RentSmart Certificate course are empowered tenants who understand their rights and responsibilities, communicate effectively with landlords, neighbours and roommates, budget to maintain their housing and look after their home. Financial benefits include the reduction in the costs related to moving, damages and evictions, as well as the societal benefits of stable housing and all its related impacts.
“Excellent job. Thank you for letting me know that I don’t need to put up with abuse.”
“This course can change your life. We are all renters at some point.”
“This class was very helpful for me and my boyfriend. Now we know our rights and how to deal with renting. I am a first time renter so this class was great.”
What they say...
“I liked the helpful advice. I feel much more prepared to rent my own place.”
“The course was very informative and I am a lot more confident about smartly finding a place”
“I know now if I have any problems there are people that will help me”
“After taking the RentSmart course I feel way more knowledgeable, prepared and equipped to deal with challenges. I know I won’t be taken advantage of as easily again. I feel a lot better about renting now.”
“Thank you! This information was very helpful! I feel more confident after taking this course! I looked forward to each and every lesson.”
“So much more than just renting. A good life skills course. Friendly environment.”
“I learned so much over the past two days and I’ll be way more confident and knowledgeable about moving out in the near future”
RentSmart Support
RentSmart graduates can access “RentSmart Support” to help navigate and address issues or conflicts that may arise around housing. Our knowledgeable staff are available for telephone coaching and can help solve issues or direct you to available resources.
If you have not yet taken a course and would like to, see our calendar of events to find a RentSmart Certificate course near you and information on registration. If you do not yet have RentSmart in your community, please use the form on the right below.