When renting a property, a correctly set lease is absolutely essential. As lawyer Pavel Strnad from AK Polverini Strnad points out, cases where the tenant destroys the apartment, does not pay the rent and refuses to move out are becoming more frequent, and the landlord’s options are very limited. Even a marginal provision on delivery, which is usually not given much attention, can therefore save the property owner’s property.
“Currently, due to the dramatically rising real estate prices, the interest in rentals is also growing significantly. Although the landlord can choose more about who moves into his apartment, he should still be very careful, especially with regard to the rental agreement. If some provisions are missing in it, the eviction of a non-paying tenant can take years, as everything has to be resolved through a court process. During the entire time, the owner is usually without any income from the property, on the contrary, he has to spend additional funds, even though he has the right to compensation in the amount of the agreed rent by law,” says attorney Pavel Strnad from AK Polverini Strnad.
“We dealt with a case where the client rented an apartment and the tenant suddenly stopped paying the rent. When asked by the landlord, she said that she still had things in the apartment, but that she had moved in with a friend and was no longer staying in the apartment. That ended all her communication with the landlord. The landlord later found out that several foreclosures were already underway against the tenant. This was apparently also the reason why she changed the address of her permanent residence, stated in the lease agreement, to the address of the municipal office,” explains attorney Pavel Strnad from AK Polverini Strnad.
In the event that the tenant grossly violates his obligations arising from the lease, the lessor may terminate the lease with a three-month notice period. For example, non-payment of rent for a period of two months can be considered a gross violation. In the case of a three-month rent delay, the landlord can even terminate the lease immediately – i.e. without a notice period. However, after writing the notice, a problem may arise as to how and where the landlord should validly deliver it. According to the law, the notice must be given to the other party. In addition to personal delivery to the apartment, it is also sufficient to drop it in the mailbox or leave the package at the post office and deliver a call to pick it up, if the tenant could not be reached. The tenant must be given a real opportunity to become familiar with the contents of the letter. However, when and if they will actually do so is no longer decisive.
“The landlord wanted to deliver the notice directly to the rented apartment. However, the tenant explicitly stated that she was no longer staying in the apartment. So it cannot be said with certainty that such a letter would have come within the sphere of her disposition. The delivery of documents to the municipal office will not be successful if, in addition, the office is not authorized to receive any private correspondence. The tenant did not tell the landlord about the friend’s new address,” explains attorney Pavel Strnad from AK Polverini Strnad.
“The landlord is thus in a difficult situation. He loses the rent, at the same time he is not authorized to enter the apartment and clear it out, as this could be a violation of the freedom of housing. Only the court can decide on the eviction of the apartment,” says attorney Pavel Strnad from AK Polverini Strnad. “Even for that, however, it is necessary for the tenant to receive the notice. If his whereabouts are unknown for a longer period of time, the only option is to ask the court to appoint a guardian and then take legal action against him, for example, to file a notice of termination. However, this process will take at least several more months,” adds attorney Pavel Strnad.
If such a case is not dealt with in the tenancy agreement, terminating a tenancy with a tenant who is deliberately concealing their whereabouts can potentially be very difficult and costly. Compensation for lost rent will usually be difficult to enforce if the tenant is in foreclosure. The landlord’s legal representation costs will then add up to tens of thousands of crowns.
Source: AK Polverini Strnad
