Can a landlord or tenant change the locks on a rental unit?
Short Answer
In Newfoundland and Labrador neither the landlord nor the tenant may change a lock on a door that gives entry to the rental unit while the tenant lives there, except by mutual consent (Statutory Condition 6).
Except by mutual consent, neither the landlord nor the tenant may alter a lock or locking system on a door giving entry to the unit while the tenant is living there. The Act stops at that. It does not go on to give either side a right to a key, so if a lock is being changed by agreement, settle the key question in that agreement.
- Section 10, Statutory Condition 6, Residential Tenancies Act, 2018 (Newfoundland and Labrador)