• Vacating rented house after 7 years

I have been living in a rented apartment for the last 7 years. Due to a medical emergency I have to vacate the house within the next 15 - 20 days. The rental agreement says the notice period is 60-days and the apartment owner now wants me to pay 2-months rent + 1-months rent for painting & other (maintenance related) expenses. 
In these 7-years the owner has never painted or maintained anything in the house and this has been done only by me. 
Is there anyway I can reduce the notice period cost? There is no clause in the contract that says if the notice period is not maintained then an amount for it is to be paid.
Asked 6 years ago in Property Law
Religion: Hindu

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16 Answers

dear client,

You need not pay any thing and not incur any additional cost to the house. Just send the legal notice to owner you need to liable any rent and other etc., Don't worry about that we are here to solve the issues.

Hemadri Chandrakanth
Advocate, Vijayawada
98 Answers
10 Consultations

If the agreement stipulates 2 months notice period for early determination or termination by either parties, this must be followed in principle.

Failure to give 60 days notice period means 2 months rent if not provided by either party.

However in the case of painting, if the land lord had gotten the property painted before you entered the property on rent, then at the time of vacating the premises it must be handed back to the landlord in the same condition. In your case you continued as a tenant for 7 years at a stretch and the landlord never bothered to get it painted in the interim and neither did you ask the landlord to get it painted in between these 7 years. If you had gotten it painted in between, produce the receipts for the same and urge the landlord not to deduct this from out of the security deposit amount. If he agrees then problem solved, otherwise you have to get issued a legal notice and take the landlord to court.

Kiran N. Murthy
Advocate, Bangalore
1298 Answers
194 Consultations

You are bound by terms of contract

2) you have to pay 2 months rent as you did not give 2 months notice

3) you are not liable to pay painting charges if there is no clause to that effect in the contract

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
96426 Answers
7773 Consultations

Dear Client,

For any paint/maintenance, land lord is liable not u, u can refuse, LL has no source or legal remedy available.

And when there`s no clause for extra payment for default in notice period, than he has no option even in court of law to ask to pay 2-months rent + .

Refuse him straight, he can`t do anything, if he creates nuisance, call the police.

Yogendra Singh Rajawat
Advocate, Jaipur
22944 Answers
31 Consultations

1. A notice period clause is stated in the contract so that it gives reasonable time to both parties in the event of termination of contract. For the landlord, it would afford him to find a new tenant who can occupy the premises immediately after existing tenant vacates, so that his income flow is not disturbed.

2. Considering above in mind, I suggest you offer 1 month rent to your landlord which should also take care of the painting and other expenses.

3. If you refuse to pay him, then he can deduct the same from your security deposit, and this will lead to unnecessary disputes.

4. So talk to your landlord and request him to be reasonable. You will have to take a hot and cold approach depending on the circumstances.

5. In absence of any clause in the contract, the landlord cannot make such demands though.

6. If the landlord does not relent, then I would suggest not to hand over the possession unless he simultaneously refunds your security deposit.

Yusuf Rampurawala
Advocate, Mumbai
7640 Answers
79 Consultations

If you have given him 15-20 days advances notice, this has to be adjusted against the 60 days notice period and accordingly you have to reimburse him for violating the notice period.

He cannot charge you a month's rent for painting etc., in case the same is not provided for in the rent agreement.

Vibhanshu Srivastava
Advocate, Lucknow
9638 Answers
305 Consultations

A. Generally, as per the terms of the Lease Agreement, you need to give 60 days notice before vacate the premises. In addition to this, you are liable to pay painting charges. Else the owner of the premises is entitle to deduct or recover 60 days rent from the tenant.

B. In the absence of the any terms and condition towards the maintenance and painting, the tenant has to return back the possession as the manner he got the possession at the time of entering into the premises.

C. At the option of the owner, you can demand notice period's derogation if you provide tenant by 15 or 30 days. Percontra, you need to check as to whether the rent agreement duly stamped or not and renewed from time to time or not? Else court never accept your claim due error in process of law.

B.T. Ravi
Advocate, Bangalore
943 Answers
96 Consultations

Dear Sir,

It is mutual agreement with some implied understandings. You have adored the house all these seven years without asking the owner anything towards the maintenance. Tell that you can one month rent towards painting etc., but you cannot pay 60 months rent. If he refuse. Later issue a notice and file suit for recovery. Then he come to terms. Please approach the following NGO to teach a lesson to the land lord. Best of Luck.

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Bitter PIL for landlords, a boon for poor tenants

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Petitioners, Dove Drive Without Borders Foundation approached the court contending that tenants in the city have absolutely no bargaining power during negotiations with the landlord for the quantum of money to be paid as security deposit.

Extortion via high deposits demanded as ‘security’ bonds by landlords in Bengalurumust stop, says a group of petitioners — newcomers to the city and good Samaritans— have teamed up to protect the interests of tenants house-hunting in the city. The activists have filed a Public Interest Litigation in the Karnataka High Court addressing the interests of people who do not own homes but must rent housing under one-on-one tenancy agreements with landlords. Such laws already exist in states such asTamil Nadu and Bihar, says Wasim Memon, founder of The Drive without Borders Foundation.

The Foundation, a citizens’ movement that started with the objective of safeguarding the rights of motorists and road users in India and crusaded for a single rate of road tax in all Indian states, is leading the charge.

Waseem Memon said tenants started contacting him on their Facebook page seeking help when faced by Bengaluru’s inequitable rental market. He, a Hyderabadi himself, decided to do something about it.

In the absence of standardised rates for security deposits, it has become customary for landlords to insist upon high security deposits equivalent to 10 months’ rent. For example, a residential property with a monthly rent of `10,000 would command a security deposit of a lakh, while a property with the monthly rent of `30,000 would mean shelling out a proportionate deposit of `3,00,000. This earns the landlord handsome returns through interest earned on the deposits.

The problem is compounded when some homeowners arbitrarily and with impunity get away with deducting amounts of their choosing, posing flippant and vague causes such as ‘damage’ or ‘repainting charges’ as reasons for the deductions.

This unfairly raises the total layout for rent, and results in income loss through the loss of interest for, often, hard-pressed youngsters and recent economic immigrants.

Priyanka Patel, a young professional who started living in a flat in Marathahalli, shelled out `1.5 lakh around two years ago as a security deposit and was faced with no choice but to give away `56,000 to her London-based landlady, though she had agreed to only pay `30,000, ostensibly for “repainting” the property.At one time, the landlady threatened to keep their deposit money if she had any male visitors, even relatives, to the house.

Though the problem extends across all income classes and communities, the unsanctioned practice harms vulnerable groups of, often, young men and women who move to live in Bengaluru to be part of its booming electronics and IT industries, the region’s largest employers.

“Young immigrants and couples in junior positions in jobs who are new to the city are also badly-affected,” says Memon who is leading the group of activists. “They lose lakhs of rupees to landlords each year in the guise of one imagined problem or another. Going to court to establish the nature of the wrongdoing by a landlord is difficult, expensive and time-consuming and not considered a viable option by busy city dwellers. So, in the absence of legal recourse, tenants have little option but to bear the financial burden.”

The practice has become rampant and reached near epidemic proportions, he says: “Keeping this in mind, the Central Government’s draft Model Tenancy Act (first in 2011 and a revised version in 2015) seeks to update the law relating to landlords and tenants across the nation. It is a model law directed for the consideration of state governments. it will provide for a cap on security deposits for tenancy agreements at three months’ rent.”

The statute, if put in place, also seeks a retrospective provision where tenants who have their cash — greater than 3 months’ rent — stuck with landlords may ask for it back, and expect it to be returned within a period of 15 days. The citizens’ group, Drive Without Borders, a Facebook group, has sought a preliminary response from the high court within 21 days of the receipt of the petition.

Kishan Dutt Kalaskar
Advocate, Bangalore
6174 Answers
489 Consultations

Dear,

Not to worry, as you say that you are vacating house because of health issue, and it is not mentioned

in your rent agreement also that if you failed to comply this condition then you have to pay rent for this,

this is all rubbish, he only want's to cheat you. No need to give money for maintenance and talk to him

for nominal amount, if he is not satisfied with that, then vacate the house. Otherwise do a complaint in

local police station.

Tarun Agarwal
Advocate, Jaipur
769 Answers
3 Consultations

As you are not serving notice you have to pay two months salary though you can occupy the premises for two months.

Further if there is no clause than you are not liable to pay any painting and other charges for the house.

It is not written for amount anywhere for notice but the notice period implies that two months before leaving you have to inform so that he can find new tenant see if you have to pay two month rent you can keep occupying the premises there wont be any problem till 60 days.

Shubham Jhajharia
Advocate, Ahmedabad
25514 Answers
179 Consultations

This my advise to you:

1. You can leave the flat before the 60 days period;

2. You don't need to pay exorbitant expenses but you need to pay the rent for two months since it is part of your contract;

3. You can issue a legal notice to him stating the charges being asked are arbitrary;

4. Technically the repairs and painting cost are to be done by landlord, since he has not done it, then you should ask him to show the invoice for the expenses borne by him;

5. You can then also approach court as method of last resort.

Gowaal Padavi
Advocate, Mumbai
1920 Answers
5 Consultations

1. Well maintaining upkeep of the tenanted house by painting and causing repairmen is the responsibility of the landlord.

2. If he refuses to do so then the tenant can cause such work done and then adjust the expenses from the rent he has to pay.

3. this is permissible under law and the landlord is bound to accept such adjustments.

4. So you can adjust the expenses from the notice period costs or security deposit.

Devajyoti Barman
Advocate, Kolkata
23151 Answers
506 Consultations

If the required painting is your obligation then you would have painted the house as per your requirement you are bound to follow the terms and condition laid down in the rent agreement before vacating the house to avoid any dispute for breach of rent agreement

Vimlesh Prasad Mishra
Advocate, Lucknow
6852 Answers
23 Consultations

If nothing is there then don’t pay anything, if in case they ask for the same call police.

As they can only ask for it by going to the civil court for under the contract law or specific act law.

You are safe.

Sanjay Baniwal
Advocate, South Delhi
5474 Answers
13 Consultations

Is there a registered rental agreement effective after 7 years, i.e., has it been renewed periodically?

If not then there is no condition maintainable when there is no rental agreement.

You can issue a legal demand notice to the landlord demanding the advance amount held by him while intimating the decision to vacate the rented premises.

The painting and other repair charges are to be borne by you since you have been utilising all the facilities from the beginning and it was different when you took over initially

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
86630 Answers
2315 Consultations

It is not necessary to mention all the conditions in the agreement. In some exceptional condition the notice periof may be avoided, in your case there is exigency to leave the rented house without following the notice period then the landlord is not entitled to claim performance of notice p e r i o d. claim of your landlord is not genuine therefore you can file a complaint before the rent controller for avoidance of notice p e r i o d.

Shivendra Pratap Singh
Advocate, Lucknow
5127 Answers
78 Consultations

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