Sabbatical, fellowship or relocation

Away for a year or two?

A sabbatical at another university, a fellowship, a contract in another city, or a move you are trying before you commit to it. The house stays yours, a screened resident pays the mortgage, and the lease ends when you say it does. Kingston has steady demand for exactly this kind of home, furnished or not.

Get My Free Rent Estimate Furnished or unfurnished?

Ready now? Start my management agreement online.

A lease that matches your calendar

The whole point of renting for a year is getting the home back at the end of it. Ontario tenancies do not end on their own, so the lease, the notice and the timing have to be set up with your return in mind.

A fixed term that matches the leaveTwelve months for a sabbatical year, six for a half-year leave, two years for a longer posting. A fixed-term lease in Ontario continues month to month when it ends, so the term is the floor, not the ceiling.
Your return written in from the startWhen your return date is firm, we serve the N12 notice for landlord's own use: at least 60 days' notice ending at the end of the term, one month's rent paid to the resident as compensation, and your sworn intention to live in the home for at least a year. We time it so the house is empty, cleaned and inspected before your flight lands.
Extended, or not coming back?If the leave is extended, the tenancy simply continues. If the move becomes permanent, you already have a performing rental, a clean statement history and a manager who can keep running it or help you sell with a resident in place.

Furnished or unfurnished?

Kingston is unusual: a university, a military college, a teaching hospital and a federal workforce bring a steady stream of people who need a complete home for exactly one year. That changes the answer for some houses.

Furnished, for the visiting year

Visiting faculty, medical fellows and residents, researchers and professionals on contract want a furnished home with the linens in the cupboard and the Wi-Fi working. For a well-located, well-kept house near Queen's, the hospitals or downtown, a furnished 12-month lease can command a premium over the unfurnished rent, and you keep your furniture in use rather than in storage.

The trade-offs: a detailed inventory with photos at move-in and move-out, wear on your things, and a smaller pool of applicants. We only recommend it where the premium pays for the hassle.

Unfurnished, for the widest market

Clear the home, store your furniture, and rent to the largest pool of applicants at the going rate for a house like yours. Simpler inventory, simpler lease, usually faster to lease. The right answer for most homes outside the furnished pockets of the city.

What we steer owners away from is the middle: a few rooms of your things, a locked basement full of boxes and a resident who was promised a "mostly furnished" house. Your written estimate shows the furnished and unfurnished rent side by side so you can decide on numbers.

What we handle while you are away

Before you go

Photography while the house looks its best, pricing from current comparables, listing timed to your departure, screening on credit, income, background and references, and a documented move-in inspection.

While you are gone

Rent by pre-authorized debit, your draw by EFT, maintenance through insured trades on a published clock, a winter drive-by, an annual photo inspection, and a statement you can read from any time zone.

Before you come back

The notice served and timed to your return, the move-out inspection, cleaning and repairs done, the deposit accounting closed out, and the keys where you left them.

Response standards with a clock on them

Owners judge a manager by how fast they get an answer, ahead of fees and even occupancy. So we publish the clock we run on and put it in the management agreement.

20 min

First call

A.J. Keilty calls every new owner enquiry within 20 minutes in business hours, or at 8:30 the next business day.

Same day

Owner replies

Every owner call or email is answered the same business day by the person handling your property, not an auto-reply.

1 hour

Emergencies

An emergency trade is dispatched within one hour, 24/7, and the after-hours line is answered by a person.

1 / 5 days

Routine repairs

Routine requests are acknowledged within one business day and scheduled within five, with you approving anything above your limit.

The full standards, including inspections and vendor rules, are on the maintenance services page.

Flat-rate pricing, published

One flat rate for Full Service management of a house or condo. Every other fee is tied to work actually done on your property, listed on the single-family page and confirmed in writing before you sign anything.

Full Service

$149 + HST / unit / month

✓Rent collection and delinquency management
✓Monthly owner statement and 24/7 owner portal
✓Dedicated property manager, one point of contact
✓Maintenance coordination and annual photo inspection
✓24/7 emergency response for residents
✓Landlord and Tenant Board process handling

Leasing Fee

1 month's rent + HST

✓Professional photography, 3D tour and floor plans
✓Listed on rentals.ca, Kijiji, Zumper and more
✓Advertising funded by us, up to 50% of one month's rent
✓Credit, income, background and reference checks
✓You approve the final applicant, always
✓Billed at occupancy, not up front

What you can count on

Cancel on 60 days noticeA one-year agreement that renews automatically, cancellable at any point on 60 days written notice.

Your money in trustRent and deposits are held in a separate trust account, reconciled monthly, and your draw is sent by EFT.

You approve the spendAnything above your approval limit waits for your decision, except an emergency that threatens the home or the people in it.

Same rate for everyoneA one-year lease costs the same to manage as a ten-year one. No premium for furnished homes, for short terms, or for owners overseas.

See every fee, listed. Renting a condo? The condo page has the same schedule plus the condo-specific details.

What owners say about running a home from a distance

Public Google reviews, quoted as written. KEILTY is rated 4.8 on Google from 36 reviews.

★★★★★

"Very satisfied with this company's service. Totally hands off for the owner. Also company's owner portal included every report there like income statement, repairs, tasks. Very handy for the owner to look for the information."

Jessie Wang

Owner client

★★★★★

"Brandon has been providing professional, prompt, efficient and kind assistance from the beginning till now. We also notice continuing improvements in communications with clients like online portal, quick response to requests and especially helpful regular financial notice/report packages for owner's."

Tuyen Huynh

Owner, University Studios

Read all the reviews

What would your home rent for during your year away?

A free rent estimate with a furnished and unfurnished comparison for your home and a written management quote, with a call from A.J. Keilty within 20 minutes in business hours.

Free Rent Estimate

No obligation. Prepared by a local property manager.

A call within 20 minutes in business hours, the written estimate within 24 hours of that call. We never share your information.

Leave date on the calendar? Talk to us now.

Visiting-year applicants start looking months ahead. Call 613-545-3322 or email ClientCare@KEILTY.com and we will tell you what the house would rent for, furnished and not, and when to list it.

Get My Free Rent Estimate Call 613-545-3322

Frequently asked questions

Sabbatical and relocation owners, answered

The questions faculty, clinicians and relocating professionals ask before a year away, with the same answers you would get on the phone.

Can I lease my home for exactly twelve months and get it back?

Yes. We lease on a fixed term matched to your leave, and when your return date is firm we serve the N12 notice for landlord's own use with at least 60 days' notice ending at the end of the term, pay the resident one month's rent as compensation, and file the affidavit confirming you intend to live there for at least a year. The tenancy does not end on its own in Ontario, which is why the notice matters.

Does a furnished rental earn more?

For some homes, yes. Kingston has steady demand from visiting faculty, medical fellows and professionals on contract who want a complete home for one year, and a well-located furnished house can command a premium over the unfurnished rent. Your written estimate shows both numbers so you can decide whether the premium pays for the inventory, the wear and the smaller applicant pool.

Is a furnished, fixed-term rental covered by the Residential Tenancies Act?

Yes. A furnished house leased for months at a time is an ordinary residential tenancy, with the Ontario Standard Lease, the rent increase guideline for homes first occupied before 2018-11-15, and the Landlord and Tenant Board all applying. The short-stay exemptions are for hotels and similar accommodation, not a family home on a year's lease.

What if my sabbatical is extended?

Nothing needs to happen. A fixed-term lease continues month to month when it ends, the rent keeps arriving, and we serve the notice when your actual return date is confirmed. If the resident would like a new fixed term and so would you, we renew it for 25% of one month's rent.

Can I leave some belongings in the house?

You can, but it is the option we recommend least. Belongings lower the rent and blur responsibility. If some things must stay, we set aside one locked space, write it into the lease and photograph it at move-in. Either rent it furnished, properly, or rent it clear.

Who looks after the garden, the lawn and the snow?

The resident, written into the lease, is standard for a house. If you have a garden you care about, we arrange a landscaper and the cost comes off the rent. Someone has to be responsible for the City of Kingston's sidewalk clearing rules, and we make sure the lease says who.

I will be outside Canada. Does the tax withholding apply to me?

If you remain a resident of Canada for tax purposes, which many people on a one-year sabbatical do, the non-resident rules do not apply. If you become a non-resident, 25% of the gross rent must be withheld and remitted monthly unless the CRA approves an NR6 undertaking, and we handle the remittance and the annual NR4 slip as your agent. Your accountant confirms which applies to you; we do the paperwork either way.

What does it cost?

Full Service management is a flat $149 plus HST per month for a house or condo, and the leasing fee is one month's rent plus HST when a resident is placed. There is no premium for furnished homes, short terms or owners overseas. Every other fee is listed on the single-family page and confirmed in a written quote before you sign anything.