First-Message Screening Guide for Ontario Landlords: Reply Templates, Lawful Questions & Viewing Script

Kijiji and Facebook Marketplace room ads bring in a lot of one-line messages. This guide helps you answer every one of them quickly and the same way, without asking anything you shouldn't.

Inside (4-page PDF):

- A 3-step first-message routine: the same opener for everyone, sorting by how complete the reply is (not by profile), and batched viewings.

- What you can and can't ask: a two-column table based on the OHRC's rental housing policy and O. Reg. 290/98, including why "tell me where you work" is a problem.

- 7 copy-paste replies: "Is this available?", a nudge, viewing times, the "I can't consider that" reply, money before a viewing, a quiet-lead follow-up, and the room-is-taken close.

- Scam red flags in both directions: from fake renters, and the things that make your honest ad look like a scam.

- A viewing-booking script: a booking message, a day-before reminder, the same 8-step order at every viewing, and safety tips.

- An inquiry log: objective facts only, so you can show you treated everyone the same way.

Sources linked: OHRC, ontario.ca, Tribunals Ontario, Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. Not legal advice.