No, rent control is not nation-wide. In Calgary, due to the booming economy, some landlords are increasing rents by 50%
Here's some more info for you taken from the Government of Canada website - hope this helps (although it is a bit confusing). It sounds as though buying a residence in Canada is the key to determining if you are considered a resident of Canada.
Factual Residence -- Entering Canada
Establishing Residential Ties in Canada
16. The residence status of an individual is always a question of fact to be determined by taking into account all of the circumstances of the individual.
The most important factor in determining whether or not an individual entering Canada becomes resident in Canada for tax purposes is whether or not the individual establishes residential ties with Canada. An individual's spouse or common-law partner, dependants, and dwelling place, if located in Canada, will almost always constitute significant ties with Canada. In addition, the CCRA considers that where an individual entering Canada applies for and obtains landed immigrant status and provincial health coverage, these ties will usually constitute significant residential ties with Canada. Thus, except in exceptional circumstances, where landed immigrant status and provincial health coverage have been acquired, the individual will be determined to be resident in Canada.
17. Although a dwelling place in Canada will usually be a significant residential tie with Canada, where an individual leases such a dwelling place to a third party, the dwelling place may not be considered to be a significant residential tie with Canada except when taken together with other residential ties. For example, a non-resident individual might acquire a dwelling place in Canada for the purpose of residing in that dwelling place upon his or her retirement at some point in the future. If the individual were to lease the dwelling place to a third party during the period of time between acquiring the dwelling place and residing there, then, unless the individual had other residential ties to Canada, the dwelling place would not be a significant residential tie with Canada during that period of time.
Generally, a lease to a third party would have to be on arm's length terms and conditions for a dwelling place located in Canada not to be considered a significant residential tie with Canada. However, in certain situations, particularly where the non-resident individual acquiring the dwelling place has never previously been resident in Canada, a dwelling place that is leased on non-arm's length terms and conditions to a third party (other than the individual's spouse, common-law partner, or dependant), may not be considered to be a significant residential tie with Canada. For example, where a non-resident individual with no existing residential ties with Canada acquires a dwelling place in Canada and leases that dwelling place to his or her sibling (or to some other relative other than a spouse, common-law partner, or dependant) for a rent that is substantially lower than the fair market rental value of the property, that dwelling place will usually not be a significant residential tie to Canada for that individual.
Date Resident Status Acquired
18. Where an individual enters Canada and establishes residential ties with Canada, the individual will generally be considered to have become a resident of Canada for tax purposes on the date he or she entered Canada.
Sojourners
20. An individual who has not established sufficient residential ties with Canada to be considered factually resident in Canada, but who sojourns (that is, is temporarily present) in Canada for a total of 183 days or more in any calendar year, is deemed to be resident in Canada for the entire year. As a result, an individual who sojourns in Canada for a total of 183 days (or more) is taxed differently under the Act than an individual who is factually resident in Canada throughout the same period of time and has subsequently become a non-resident. In particular, whereas an individual who is resident in Canada for part of a year is only taxed on his or her worldwide income for that part of the year, the individual who is deemed to be resident in Canada is liable for tax on his or her worldwide income throughout the year.
21. The CCRA considers any part of a day to be a "day" for the purpose of determining the number of days that an individual has sojourned in Canada in a calendar year. However, it is a question of fact whether an individual who is not resident in Canada is "sojourning" in Canada. An individual is not automatically considered to be "sojourning" in Canada for every day (or part day) that the person is present in Canada; the nature of each particular stay must be determined separately. To "sojourn" means to make a temporary stay in the sense of establishing a temporary residence, although the stay may be of very short duration. For example, if an individual is commuting to Canada for his or her employment and returning each night to his or her normal place of residence outside of Canada, the individual is not "sojourning" in Canada. On the other hand, if the same individual were to vacation in Canada, then he or she would be "sojourning" in Canada and each day (or part day) of that particular time period (the length of the vacation) would be counted.
