Manitoba notice to move: vacancy rates and 2026 periods

Current Manitoba bulletin periods

The Province’s Notice to Move bulletin effective January 2026, based on the 2025 CMHC report, gives these figures for certain notices involving landlord move-in, demolition, conversion or major renovations:

• Winnipeg: 2.8% vacancy — 4 months.
• Hanover: 2.2% vacancy — 4 months.
• Brandon: 1.9% vacancy — 5 months.
• Steinbach: 1.9% vacancy — 5 months.
• Thompson: 6.0% vacancy — 3 months.
• Portage la Prairie: 8.4% vacancy — 3 months.
• Winkler: 2.4% vacancy — 4 months.
• Outside specified centres: the bulletin uses the Manitoba average of 2.9% — 4 months for the covered notice category.

These are the Branch’s published January 2026 figures, not estimates of today’s vacancy or a guarantee that the same period applies to every reason for ending a tenancy. Recheck the RTB updates page before acting on a notice.

Vacancy-rate rule and why the bulletin matters

For landlord occupancy, demolition, conversion or renovations so extensive that the tenant cannot remain, a vacancy rate of 3% or more means 3 months; 2.0% to 2.9% means 4 months; and below 2% means 5 months. For a fixed-term tenancy, the notice cannot require a move before the agreed term ends, even where the vacancy-based period would finish sooner.

Sale to a purchaser who wants to occupy

The purchaser-occupancy category is different. For a tenancy without a specified end date, the RTB’s notice guide lists one month when the relevant vacancy rate is at least 3%, but three months when it is below 3%. For a fixed-term agreement, it lists three months’ notice with termination no earlier than the fixed-term end. Check that the sale and proposed occupancy actually satisfy the statutory conditions; do not use the landlord-renovation 3/4/5-month table for a sale.

Do not use the table without checking the scenario

• Read the landlord’s actual reason and identify the official Form 11A, 11B or 11C as appropriate.
• Confirm the bulletin’s effective vintage, the current area vacancy rate, the kind of tenancy and whether a school-age-child accommodation rule changes notice requirements.
• The bulletin may change when new CMHC rental market information is issued; do not calculate a legally effective termination date from this table alone.

Additional tenant protections and costs

• School-age children: where children attend a school reasonably accessible to the rental unit, the RTB describes special protection allowing eligible tenants to remain until the end of the school year (often June 30). Verify eligibility and the specific notice with the Branch.
• Moving expenses: for applicable landlord-use, demolition, conversion or major-renovation notices, the Branch says the landlord pays the tenant’s reasonable moving costs up to $500. Preserve invoices and receipts; check the statutory category rather than assuming every termination qualifies.
• Major renovations: a tenant may have a right to re-rent the unit after the work. The Branch instructs tenants to tell the landlord in writing before moving out if they want to keep that right.
• Finding somewhere sooner: after receiving one of these notices, the tenant may be able to end the tenancy with at least one rental payment period’s notice, including during a fixed term. Check the Branch process before sending an early notice.

What to preserve

Keep the complete notice (including Form 11A, 11B or 11C where appropriate), lease, proof of when and how it was served, school enrollment information if relevant, moving estimates/receipts and every exchange about returning after renovations. If a property was sold, verify the purchaser’s actual intent to occupy and whether the purchaser-notice route applies. A landlord cannot bypass the Branch process by changing locks.