# Property maintenance in St Catharines, from heat to flooding

Updated 2026-10-03.

St. Catharines runs two heat rules at once and backs them with a vital services by-law that lets the City restore heat or water itself and bill the landlord. [Niagara Region](https://roundhousegroup.ca/areas/niagara-region/) treats the water, from the Decew Falls plant, and the City owns more than 600 km of watermains ([water quality](https://www.stcatharines.ca/water-utilities-and-services/water-quality/)).

## Two heat rules, one target

The [Property Standards By-law](https://stcatharines.civicweb.net/document/22210) asks for 22 C from September 15 to May 31. The [Vital Services By-law](https://www.stcatharines.ca/by-laws-and-animal-services/commonly-requested-by-laws/vital-services-by-law/) asks for 20 C from September 15 to June 1 and lets the City step in when a service is cut. We book the furnace or boiler repair to the higher number, and a no heat call is answered 24/7. See [the heating season](https://roundhousegroup.ca/services/hvac/heating-season/).

## Water, sewers and the 2026 flood program

The City repairs the water line from the main to the property line; from there in, the water line and the [sewer lateral](https://www.stcatharines.ca/water-utilities-and-services/sewers/) are the owner's. After the City approved its [Emergency Flood Alleviation Program](https://www.stcatharines.ca/water-utilities-and-services/emergency-flood-alleviation-program/) on August 26, 2026, a backwater valve or weeping tile disconnection at an older house can be 90 percent reimbursed, to $5,000, if the work is done by a licensed plumber under a City permit. We book the plumber with the permit and keep the invoice and photos ready for the claim. Water damage after a backup is dried and documented to the by-law's moisture and mould standard. See [waterproofing](https://roundhousegroup.ca/services/waterproofing/).

## Pests and the order behind them

The by-law makes the landlord eliminate pests and prevent their return, and an order can require a qualified exterminator and a certificate of completion. Pest control is done by licensed exterminators, and the treatment record and certificate go on the file. See [pest control](https://roundhousegroup.ca/services/pest-control/).

## Who does the work

Property standards complaints start with a written letter to the landlord, then the City's form. Citizens First takes calls at 905-688-5600, and after hours urgent water and sewer matters go to the same number, option 0 ([Citizens First](https://www.stcatharines.ca/council-and-administration/citizens-first/)). Plumbing is done by licensed plumbers and drain work by licensed drain contractors. Gas work is done by TSSA registered contractors. We only use ECRA/ESA-Licensed Electrical Contractors.

To send a St. Catharines job, [request work](https://roundhousegroup.ca/request-work/).

## St. Catharines by-laws in force

- A rental unit's heating system keeps habitable rooms, bathrooms and toilet rooms at 22 C or more from September 15 to May 31 (section 5.21.1 of Property Standards By-law 2014-248). Source: [City of St. Catharines, Property Standards By-law 2014-248](https://stcatharines.civicweb.net/document/22210)
- The Vital Services By-law 2022-159 requires landlords to keep gas, heat, fuel, electricity and hot and cold water running to rental units. Its heat requirement is 20 C, measured 1.5 m above the floor and 1 m from exterior walls, September 15 to June 1 each year (By-law 2022-159 s.4), dates the City can adjust. If a landlord does not restore a service, the City can, and bills all costs plus 15 percent or $250, whichever is greater; penalties run up to $1,000 a day. Source: [City of St. Catharines, Vital Services By-law](https://www.stcatharines.ca/by-laws-and-animal-services/commonly-requested-by-laws/vital-services-by-law/)
- Walls, floors and ceilings are kept free of the moisture that causes dampness and mould (section 5.7.1 of By-law 2014-248). A landlord eliminates rodents, vermin and insects and prevents their return (section 5.4.1), and an officer's order can require a qualified exterminator and a certificate of completion (section 5.4.2). Source: [City of St. Catharines, Property Standards By-law 2014-248](https://stcatharines.civicweb.net/document/22210)
- The Emergency Flood Alleviation Program, approved August 26, 2026, reimburses 90 percent of the cost, up to $5,000, of a mainline backwater valve and weeping tile disconnection with a sump pump, at single detached, duplex to quadplex and semi detached homes built before 2012 on the City's sanitary sewer. The work is done by a licensed plumber under a City plumbing permit. Source: [City of St. Catharines, Emergency Flood Alleviation Program](https://www.stcatharines.ca/water-utilities-and-services/emergency-flood-alleviation-program/)
- A tenant reports a property standards problem through the City's online form and attaches the written complaint already sent to the landlord, with a two week timeline for the work. An inspector visits, and if the complaint is valid the owner gets a letter with the required work and a deadline. Source: [City of St. Catharines, Property Standards By-law](https://www.stcatharines.ca/by-laws-and-animal-services/commonly-requested-by-laws/property-standards-by-law/)

## Six wards and a university on the border

35.6 percent of St. Catharines households rent, 20,960 of 58,905, using 2021 Census figures in the City's June 2025 Housing Needs Assessment. The same assessment places Brock University in St. Catharines near the Thorold border, with 13 percent of Brock students living on campus ([City of St. Catharines, Housing Needs Assessment](https://www.stcatharines.ca/media/cuspwx4x/june-2025-stc-housing-needs-assessment.pdf)). The City's wards are Merritton, St. Andrew's, St. George's, St. Patrick's, Grantham and Port Dalhousie ([ward map](https://www.stcatharines.ca/council-and-administration/mayor-and-council/ward-map/)), and Port Dalhousie has a [heritage district](https://www.stcatharines.ca/arts-culture-and-events/history-and-heritage/heritage-sites/port-dalhousie-heritage-district/) where renovation can need a heritage permit.

## Related pages

- [Property Maintenance in Niagara Region](https://roundhousegroup.ca/areas/niagara-region/)
- [Student housing](https://roundhousegroup.ca/student-housing/)
- [Who is responsible for mould in an Ontario rental unit?](https://roundhousegroup.ca/answers/mould-in-a-rental-ontario/)

## Questions

### What heat does a St. Catharines rental need?

The Property Standards By-law sets 22 C from September 15 to May 31. The Vital Services By-law sets 20 C, measured 1.5 m above the floor and 1 m from exterior walls, September 15 to June 1 each year (By-law 2022-159 s.4), dates the City can adjust. We work to the higher of the two.

### Does St. Catharines license long term rentals?

No residential rental licence program appears on the City's website. Short term rentals are licensed, for two years at a time, in the operator's primary residence.

### Who owns the water line at a St. Catharines rental?

The City repairs the line from the watermain to the property line. From the property line into the building, water and sewer pipes are the owner's.

### Can a rental house get the St. Catharines flood rebate?

The program is written for homeowners of single, semi and two to four unit homes built before 2012. Whether a landlord owner qualifies is a question for the City at FLAP@stcatharines.ca, and we send the plumber's invoice and permit in the form the City asks for.