Once you move into an apartment, there are a few considerations you should keep in mind. The Landlord may have rules and regulations -

attached to your lease agreement as Schedule "A" or "B" - but even so, to make this a positive experience, there are a few simple rules you should remember. The Nova Scotia Tenancy Act is in place "to provide landlords and tenants with an efficient and cost-effective means for settling disputes" (Residential Tenancies Act., 1A). It outlines your rights and responsibilities as a tenant. Even if you do not sign a lease with your landlord, the Act applies, as it is assumed you had a verbal month-to-month lease agreement.

For more detailed information, see our FAQ concerning the Nova Scotia Tenancies Act, and the Tenancy Board.

Quality of Life Brochure by Halifax Regional Police Department (pdf)

While the Nova Scotia Tenancies Act protects you, it is also in place to protect your landlord. You both have rights and responsibilities. For example, you have the right to be treated fairly. It doesn't matter if you are a student, or if you are Canadian or International; you have the right to be treated the same as everyone else in your building. For more information, please see our Frequently Asked Questions or contact the office Coordinator.

Each city has it's own set of legislation above and beyond the Nova Scotia Statutes. The following are just a few that may apply to you. For more information, visit the HRM By-Law Legislation page.

This information is compiled from the Halifax Regional Municipality's By-Laws site. Without going into too much detail (you can read the by-law in it's entirety at the above link), Halifax follows the "Noise By-Law". The Quiet hours that will affect you most are the following:

*Statutory Holidays include: Canada Day (July 1st), Natal Day (First Monday in September), New Year's Eve (December 31), and Recognized Religious Holidays. **Remembrance Day in Canada is November 11.

The above hours are in effect 365 days a year, and pertain mainly to excessive noise such as yelling, shouting, and excessive music. An effective way to follow the by-law is to keep your music and voices contained to within your property. For example, if you live in an apartment building, keep your music within the apartment, and keep the windows shut. If you are planning to have people in, let your neighbours know and ask them to tell you if you get too loud. It's better to get to know your neighbours and have them knock at your door instead of the police!  The penalty for breaking this by-law can range from a $445 fine to jail time! Attending university is a special time in your life. You need to study and have some fun, but remember you are living in a residential neighborhood, and keeping good relationships with other member of the neighborhood is to advantage to you and other students.

The NS Smoke-free Places Act requires on December 1, 2006 that all indoor workplaces and public places to be smoke-free. The Act requires all outdoor licensed areas and patios of all restaurants, lounges, beverage rooms and cabarets to be smoke-free.

The HRM by-law on Smoke Free Places has been superceded by the more restrictive Nova Scotia Smoke Free Places Act .

For information additonal to the material provided at this site please call The Province of NS at 1-800-565-3611 or go to http://www.gov.ns.ca/hpp/tobaccoControlSmokeFree.html

General Information

Total Smoking Ban - No smoking is permitted in the following enclosed places:

• daycare, pre-school
• school, community college or university [also, no smoking on school grounds]
• library, art gallery or museum
• health-care facility
• cinema or theatre
• video arcade, pool hall, billiards room
• recreational facility where the primary activity is physical
• recreation, including a bowling alley, fitness centre, gymnasium, pool or rink
• multi-service centre, community centre/hall, arena, fire hall or church hall
• meeting or conference room or hall, ballroom or conference centre
• retail shop, boutique, market or store or shopping mall
• laundromat
• ferry, ferry terminal, bus, bus station or shelter, taxi, taxi shelter, limousine or vehicle carrying passengers for hire
• common area of a commercial building or multi-unit residential building, including but not limited to corridors, lobbies, stairwells, elevators, escalators, escalators, eating areas, washrooms and restrooms
• restaurants, lounges, beverage rooms, private clubs, cabarets, clubs or other places licensed to serve alcoholic beverages
• bingos
• a casino complex
• a facility as defined in the Hospitals Act
• offices of the Government of the Province, a municipality, a village or a school board
• provincial jail, detention centre, or reformatory
• Vehicles- no smoking in vehicles used in the course of employment while carrying two or more employees
• Restaurants - no smoking at any time
• Beverage rooms & Lounges - no smoking at any time
• Places used for Bingo - no smoking at any time
• Private clubs - no smoking at any time
• Casinos - no smoking at any time
• Licensed outdoor areas and patios
  The Act requires all outdoor licensed areas and patios of all restaurants, lounges, beverage rooms and cabarets to be smoke-free
• Nursing home or residential care facility or a part of a health-care facility used for the acute or long-term are of veterans:
  -Designated smoking rooms are permitted
  -must be enclosed and separately ventilated
  -only residents are permitted
  -signs must be posted at the entrance
• Building entrances - no smoking within 4 metres of windows, air intake vents and entrances to places of employment

No youth under the age of 19 may possess tobacco.

Tobacco possession is not an offence, however, peace officers with reasonable and probable grounds to believe that a person under 19 may be in possession of tobacco may confiscate tobacco.  For further information call the Province of NS at 1-800-565-3611 or go to http://www.gov.ns.ca/hpp/tobaccoControlSmokeFree.html

You do not have to be intoxicated to be charged for illegally possessing liquor or underage drinking. If you are intoxicated, you can be charged and/or held until sober. Actions such as tipping over mailboxes/garbage cans, urinating in public, ripping out plants, yelling and screaming and/or running in and out of traffic increase the chances of being arrested and being held and/or charged.

• Sec 78(2): Illegally posessing liquor. (Possessing it underage or having open liquor in public. This includes going next door/across the street. The fine: $445
• Sec 78(3): Underage drinking. The fine: $445
• Sec 87(1): Being intoxicated in a public place. The fine: $111.50
• Sec 95(a): Permitting drunkenness to take place in any house or any premises of which he/she is the owner, tenant or occupant. The fine: NIL (must attend court).