Your rights when you rent accommodation

You can avoid conflicts if you know your rights when renting accommodation.

Many consumers choose to rent, but few people know their rights as tenants. Knowing your rights before signing a rental agreement could help you avoid many problems.

Although most of us focus on how much we have to pay per month, it’s also important to know your rights and those of your landlord to avoid disputes or difficult-to-resolve issues.

The most important thing when renting a place is to know what you’re getting into. According to the Western Cape Department of Human Settlements, you as a tenant have the right to refuse that you or your accommodation be searched, that the landlord cannot seize your property without a court order and that the confidentiality of your communications must be respected. respected.

Your landlord, in turn, has the right to require you to pay your rent regularly, to recover the money you owe him after a court decision has been made, and to terminate your lease for reasons that are not considered abusive and as specified in the rental contract.

It is also your duty to ensure that the landlord returns the property to good condition at the end of your lease, but they should also be able to claim compensation from you for any damage or improvements.

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Your rental contract

According to the ministry, a verbal agreement is just as binding as a written lease, but if you have to sign a lease to move in and you refuse to sign it, there is no agreement and you cannot legally move in .

If you have rented accommodation for a time based on a verbal agreement and your landlord asks you to sign a lease, you are not obliged to sign it if the conditions are not the same. The owner will then have to negotiate new conditions with you.

However, it is best to have the agreement in writing to outline the terms and conditions. The information on the contract must include your name, the landlord’s name, your mailing address, the landlord’s mailing address, the address of the rented property, the rent amount and the rent increase amount, such as 10 % when the contract is renewed and also when the rent increases.

If the agreement does not specify an amount or date for the increase, the landlord must negotiate with you about the increase. Neither you nor the owner can unilaterally modify the initial contract.

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The rental contract must include the amounts of the rent and the deposit

The rental agreement should state how often you have to pay the rent, for example monthly, and the amount of the deposit. It should also include your and your landlord’s obligations, such as who is responsible for maintenance and who pays water, electricity and other bills.

Usually, the tenant pays the charges related to consumption, such as water and electricity and the owner pays the charges related to the property, such as property taxes.

Additionally, the contract should specify when you or the landlord can give notice to terminate the contract, for example if there is a lack of maintenance or if you do not pay the rent on time.

You must also both sign the internal regulations and these must be attached to the lease. A list of defects, established during a joint inspection when you move in and which you both sign, must also be attached to the lease.

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And the deposit?

You must pay the deposit if the owner requires it and it is stipulated in the lease. The landlord or his or her agent must hold your deposit in an interest-bearing account or a trust account, in the case of an agent, for the duration of your residence.

When you move out, the landlord must refund the entire deposit amount, plus any interest earned, after deducting the cost of the damage you caused and any money you still owe under the lease.

What happens if I can’t move in on a certain date?

In this case, the owner is in breach of contract and you can therefore terminate the contract. This also means that you have suffered damage and if you had to incur costs to find alternative accommodation, you can claim these from the landlord.

If you can’t move in until later and still want to stay there, negotiate with the landlord that you pay pro rata minus the rent for the first month.

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When you pay your rent

According to the Housing Act, you have the right to demand a receipt for all payments if your landlord does not provide one automatically. A receipt must include the date of issue, the address of the property, the reason for payment (whether rent, rent arrears or a deposit) and the month you are paying for.

Property Maintenance

According to the department, maintenance depends on what your lease says. The landlord is generally responsible for maintaining the exterior of the property and the tenant for the interior.

Can the owner enter the property whenever he wants?

Your landlord has the right to enter the property to carry out routine inspections, but only after giving you sufficient notice to arrange a time that is convenient for you, the ministry says, but you do not have to the right to deny the owner reasonable access.

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Can the landlord seize your property if you are late paying your rent?

The department says the property owner must first obtain a court order for the sheriff of the court to seize your property for the amount you owe. If your landlord seizes your property without a court order, it is theft and you should contact the police and file a complaint with your provincial Housing Court.

Can the landlord lock you out?

The simple answer is no. The landlord must also give you a duplicate key immediately if they change the locks due to wear and tear or another reasonable reason.

If you want to move sooner

Terminating your lease early will depend on the cancellation clause in your contract. If there is no clause, you can simply terminate your lease early without committing a breach of contract or if your landlord agrees to do so.

You can also end your lease early if your landlord has materially breached the contract, for example by failing to maintain the exterior of the property as agreed in the lease and making it impossible for you to stay.

You can also terminate the lease early under Article 14 of the Consumer Protection Act, which allows you to cancel a fixed lease early by giving 20 working days’ notice, but the landlord can then impose a reasonable cancellation penalty – so as not to punish you. , but to cover reasonable costs related to finding another tenant.

If your lease has already expired and there is no renewal clause in the rental agreement, you and the landlord have effectively renewed the previous lease on the same terms and conditions and for the full term stated in the original agreement.

This means that you must invoke the termination clause of the initial lease, if one exists, to withdraw from the contract. Without a termination clause, the best way to terminate the lease is to give the landlord one month’s written notice before the lease expires.

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What to do if the owner refuses to refund your deposit?

A security deposit is charged to cover any money you may still owe your landlord and/or the cost of repairs for any damage to the property, beyond normal wear and tear, caused by you. If your landlord keeps your deposit and cannot provide proof of the costs they have incurred, you must file a complaint with the Housing Tribunal.

You can avoid this problem by inspecting the property together when you move in and listing any existing defects in writing. You must both sign this document and it must be attached to the rental contract.

When you move out, inspect the property again together and compare the new list of defects with the one established when you moved in. The landlord may also give you the option to repair the damage yourself, or you may agree to have the landlord do so. . If the landlord makes the repairs, you have the right to see all receipts for repairs paid from the deposit.

If the repairs cost less than the deposit plus accrued interest, the landlord will have to pay you the difference.

Rental Housing Tribunal

Each province has a Housing Tribunal within its Department of Human Settlements where you can complain about unfair treatment by your landlord.