Report finds tenants’ rights at risk in Nova Scotia, issues go unaddressed

A passenger ferry operated by Halifax Transit makes its way across the Halifax harbour to the Woodside ferry terminal in Dartmouth, N.S., on Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Doug Ives

HALIFAX — A new report by a legal aid clinic says tenants’ housing rights are under threat across Nova Scotia.

Dalhousie Legal Aid Service conducted a provincewide survey of more than 1,200 tenants, and also analyzed decisions by the provincial body that enforces residential tenancy legislation.

The survey indicated that more than half of leases signed in 2025 were for fixed terms, meaning they don’t automatically renew like periodic leases.

Housing advocates say fixed-term leases offer less legal protection than periodic leases, and allow landlords to ignore rent caps when they rent to a new tenant.

The legal aid clinic says only 6.2 per cent of respondents had filed a complaint with the tenancy enforcement body, a sign that issues are under-reported and unaddressed.

The clinic says legislation and policy reform should focus on addressing the imbalance of power between landlords and the province’s 139,000 households that rent.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2025.