My landlord changed the locks and I moved out, can I get my unit back?

**What the law says.** The Act states: "A landlord shall not alter the locking system on a door giving entry to a rental unit or residential complex or cause the locking system to be altered during the tenant's occupancy of the rental unit without giving the tenant replacement keys" [cite:ca-ontario-rta-2006-sec24]. Your landlord changed the locks on 12 May 2024 and gave you no keys, which broke that rule. It also states: "A landlord shall not recover possession of a rental unit subject to a tenancy unless, (a) the tenant has vacated or abandoned the unit; or (b) an order of the Board evicting the tenant has authorized the possession" [cite:ca-ontario-rta-2006-sec39]. Locking you out was not a lawful way to end your tenancy. **Money you can claim.** If the Board (the Landlord and Tenant Board) finds your landlord did acts of the kind listed in paragraphs 2 to 6 of s. 29(1) — the unannounced visits, shouting, and hot-water shutoffs fit the pattern those paragraphs describe — it can order him to stop, pay your out-of-pocket expenses, reduce your rent, and pay a fine up to the greater of $10,000 and the Small Claims Court limit [cite:ca-ontario-rta-2006-sec31]. Because his conduct appears to have pushed you out, the Board may also order him to pay "all or any portion of any increased rent which the tenant has incurred or will incur for a one-year period after the tenant has left the rental unit" plus "reasonable out-of-pocket moving, storage and other like expenses" [cite:ca-ontario-rta-2006-sec31]. For you that means the $250 monthly increase (up to about $3,000 for the year from 3 June 2024), the $600 moving charge, the $180 monthly storage, and possibly the $200 deposit, if the Board finds these reasonable and caused by his conduct. **Getting the unit back.** The Board can order him to let you back in only "if the Board is satisfied that the rental unit is vacant" [cite:ca-ontario-rta-2006-sec31]. You heard he re-rented it; if someone else is living there, this remedy is likely unavailable and money is your main relief. The provided sections do not say what rights a new occupant has, so that point is unsettled here. Section 100 does not help you — it covers a tenant transferring occupancy, not a landlord re-renting [cite:ca-ontario-rta-2006-sec100]. **Deadlines.** The sections set no filing deadline for the application itself, so I cannot say you missed one — but apply promptly. A possession order expires 15 days after issuance unless filed with the sheriff (45 days if filed) [cite:ca-ontario-rta-2006-sec31].