Trent Lakes Launches Mandatory Registration Program for Short-Term Rental Accommodation Owners

STRA owners are now required to register their property with the Municipality of Trent Lakes, after Trent Lakes Council approved the STRA Mandatory Registration By-Law brought forward at the March 4, 2025, Council Meeting.

The registration program requires all STRA owners who wish to rent, advertise or offer for lease their single detached dwelling for a period of less than 28 consecutive days to register with the municipality. Owners may do so by submitting a signed application providing basic information about their property, as well as agreeing to the Terms and Conditions to ensure safety of guests and assist in mitigating disturbances to surrounding residents. The form is available through the municipal website to submit electronically. The municipal office also has paper copies on hand for visitors.

Enforcement will be based primarily as a reactive tool rather than proactive. A main component for the accountability of STRA owners is the demerit point system. STRAs that have suspected violations will be investigated. If an STRA is found to be in contravention of any by-law, owners and or renters may be issued a penalty notice. STRA owners can dispute these through the AMPS appeal process. Only after the penalty has been confirmed through this process will STRAs be assigned demerit points, which may lead to a registration being revoked. Penalty amount and a demerit point system is based on level of severity to aid in promoting compliance.

“One of the perks of the registry is to have the contact information for the Short-Term Rental so that when complaints are received, staff or the after-hours agencies can immediately contact that person identified to mitigate the issues quickly as possible,” says Barbara Waldron, Chief Building Official for the Municipality of Trent Lakes.

The STRA program fees are as follows:

There are an estimated 300 STRA’s throughout Trent Lakes. Over 50 municipalities in Ontario have implemented Short-Term Rental regulations through licensing by-laws.

In March 2022, the Municipality of Trent Lakes approved a three-year phased program to recognize and address the emergence of Short-Term residential rental properties. A working group made up of four staff and two Council members lead work on the program. In 2023, the working group focused on increasing by-law enforcement by implementing an Administrative Monetary Penalty (AMP) system and introducing a nuisance by-law.

In 2024, the working group revisited the possibility of a STRA licensing program, gathering public input through two Special Council meetings and an online feedback form.

At the November 5, 2024, Council Meeting, staff brought forward three possible recommendations on behalf of the working group for Council to consider. Rather than move forward with a licensing program, or rely on enhanced by-law enforcement, Council made the motion to move forward with a registration program.

“This may not be the end-all-be-all and solve all the problems, but this is a start,” says Terry Lambshead, Mayor of Trent Lakes, at the November 4, 2024, meeting. “It doesn’t show the overreach that a [licensing program] does. That’s not necessary. A [registration program] covers our bases.”

Applications will be reviewed in the order in which they are received. Once an application is deemed complete, municipal staff will review sewage records for the applicant property. Once records are retrieved and maximum occupancy of guests is confirmed, an invoice for an approved STRA registration will be sent out approximately five days after the application is completed. Once payment in full is received by the Municipality, a registration will be issued.

Should there be no sewage records available, a sewage inspection review will be required for a fee of $500.00.

Once registered, owners must display the municipally issued registration number in all advertisements.

“As a member of the Short-Term Rental Working Group, my assessment is that this by-law, and the approach it represents, is measured, focused, responsive, and responsible,” says Carol Armstrong, Deputy Mayor of Trent Lakes at the March 4, 2025, meeting. “There's not a single detail in this program that has not been discussed, debated, opened up for public input and benchmarked with other municipalities.”