The Virtual Viewing Script: Twenty-Five Questions for a Canadian Rental Walkthrough

Would you sign a year’s lease on a unit you’ve only seen through someone else’s phone camera, held at arm’s length, with the landlord narrating over a spotty connection? Plenty of South Africans do exactly this, because renting from 15,000 kilometres away leaves few other options. Good virtual viewing questions for Canadian rentals turn that gamble into a reasonable bet.

National average asking rent was $2,033 a month as at June 2026, down 4.3% year over year — the 21st consecutive month of annual decline. Vacancy rates have loosened enough that landlords in many markets are now offering incentives, a free month or a signing bonus among them, leverage renters haven’t had at any point since the pandemic. That context matters for a virtual viewing: you have more room to ask for a proper walkthrough than a landlord might expect.

Before the call

Ask for the video walkthrough in daylight hours, so the unit’s own natural light matters, and request that the landlord or agent walk the full unit — every room, every closet, the building’s common areas — rather than a pre-recorded highlight reel. Half the value of the exercise is in making the landlord walk the whole unit while you watch. A landlord unwilling to do a live walkthrough on request is itself useful information.

What to have them check on camera

The hardest part is spotting damp and noise on a virtual tour, so build the call around those two and work outward:

• Water pressure: run the kitchen and bathroom taps, and flush the toilet, while you’re watching.
• Heating: ask them to show the thermostat, and if it’s winter, confirm the unit is actually warm.
• Windows and doors: have them open every one, so you can see the view and hear whether they seal.
• Cell signal near a window, and a working outlet in each room.
• Damp and mould: zoom in on corners, under sinks, and around window frames, where problems hide fastest.
• Noise: ask them to pause for a few seconds in each room so you can listen — traffic, neighbours, an elevator shaft.

What to ask verbally, not just visually

Confirm what’s included in rent — utilities, parking, laundry — and what isn’t. Ask directly about the building’s age, when heating and hot water were last serviced, and whether there’s a history of pest issues. Ask what identification and references they’ll want from an applicant who hasn’t yet landed in Canada, and whether a co-signer or larger deposit is expected in place of a Canadian credit history. Ask how they handle a lease signed before you’ve physically seen the unit — some landlords will hold a unit with a deposit pending a satisfactory video call; others won’t commit until you’re in the country.

It’s also worth asking them to open a few cupboards and the fridge on camera. Appliances aren’t usually the problem — a landlord willing to show the unimpressive parts of a unit on request is telling you something about how they’ll behave once you’re a tenant with a maintenance request.

The honest limit of a video call

No walkthrough, however thorough, replaces standing in a space and noticing what a camera can’t capture — a smell, a draft, how a room feels at a particular hour. Go in expecting to confirm the basics are sound and the landlord is straightforward to deal with, rather than assuming you’ve fully assessed the unit the way you would in person. If something feels rushed or evasive on the call, weigh that as heavily as anything you actually saw.

Our free First 90 Days guide covers the rest of the landing sequence, from banking to what comes after the lease is signed.