canada rental-property british-columbia
Landlord arguing we were a subletters and don&#39;t have rights as tennants
<p>I'm guessing I know the answer to this but someone told me it doesn't work this way. </p>

<p>I'm renting a shared house. I have an individual lease with the people who told me they were the landlord, and I pay rent to them directly. It turns out the people who claimed to be the landlord are not the actual owners of the house. They are telling us now the actual owners want to move into the house so we have to move out. Someone was telling me, we are just subletters since the people we signed the lease with aren't the owners, and therefore not protected at all by the Tenancy Act.</p>

<p>Does it work this way? At minimum I would argue that the people we signed the lease with lied by claiming they were the landlord. </p>

<p>In BC, a landlord can end a tenancy with two months' notice if (among other reasons) <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/residential-tenancies/ending-a-tenancy/landlord-notice/two-month-notice" rel="nofollow noreferrer">the landlord plans in good faith to use the property</a>.  That will be true even if the premises are occupied by a subtenant: <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/residential-tenancies/during-a-tenancy/sublet-and-assignment" rel="nofollow noreferrer">"the agreement with the sub-tenant cannot contradict the original tenancy agreement."</a></p>

<p>However, if the tenants have sublet the property to you without the landlord's written permission, that is sufficient for the landlord to end the tenancy:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>If a tenant sublets or assigns their tenancy without the landlord’s written permission, the landlord may serve notice to end the tenancy – which means the tenancy would also end for the sub-tenant, unless they’re able to negotiate a new tenancy agreement with the landlord.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>In such a case, the required notice period is <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/residential-tenancies/ending-a-tenancy/landlord-notice/one-month-notice" rel="nofollow noreferrer">one month</a>, not two.</p>

<p>There is the "real" landlord, who owns the property. You had no contract with them, and they can legally throw you out quite quickly. It would be strange if a home owner can lose their rights because they rent to a fraudster. </p>

<p>There is the "fake" landlord, the one you paid rent to. It is quite possible that since you both signed a rental contract, and you paid your rent regularly, they have to give you the rights that the "real" landlord would have had to give you. And they can't, for obvious reasons, so they might be responsible for any damages. For example for your cost of having to move out quickly instead of after a longer period. </p>

<p>The answer depends on whether the people you signed tenancy with had the right to sublet.</p>

<p><em>If they did</em> and you can prove it, then you are a tenant and protected by the Tenancy Act.</p>

<p><em>If they did not</em>, then yes, it works the way you've been told because they do not fall under the <a href="http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/02078_01#section1" rel="nofollow noreferrer">definition</a> of landlord. You have been cheated by them (to see it clearly, consider the edge-case scenario if they were total strangers not having any relation to the property whatsoever — your case is essentially the same). Unfortunately, you do not have any right to occupy the property. The only remedy is to sue the "landlords" for misleading you.</p>
