In legal
terminology, rental agreement which is also known as lease agreement refers to
the transfer of immovable property for a specific period of time in
consideration of a price on certain terms and conditions.
The person who
transfers such property is called the 'Lessor', and the person who accepts the
transfer is called the 'Lessee'. Therefore, a Lease means transfer of property
to the Lessee who has only the right to make use of the property for a particular
purpose and for a fixed period of time.
Lease Agreement is an
agreement or a contract between the owner or the holder of the immovable
property and the tenant who enjoys and makes use of the immoveable property.
The amount charged for using and enjoying the immoveable property is called the
'rent'. In the Transfer of Property Act, the owner is referred to as the
'Lessor', and the tenant as the 'Lessee'. Therefore, it is better to stick to
these terms while drafting a lease agreement.
If the rent is paid
on yearly basis or if the period of lease exceeds one year, then it is
necessary to register the lease agreement. It is a common practice to terminate
the agreement at the end of every eleventh month and then enter into a fresh
lease agreement. This is being done to avoid payment of stamp duty and
registration charges.
An agreement to lease
shall be drafted carefully and properly. It should be fair to both the Lessor
(landlord) and the Lessee (tenant). It must mention the parties to the deed,
the description of the property to be transferred, the duration of the lease,
the monthly rent payable, the date for payment of the monthly rent; the clause
for enhancement of rent on renewal of the lease period.
The amount of interest
free refundable security deposit, penalty clauses in case of rent default,
liability of the Lessee for damages to the property and the fixtures and
fittings, notice period in case of early termination of lease; the date of
commencement of lease and the date of expiry of lease; the notice period and
manner in which the notice will have to be served must also be mentioned.
The Lessor shall
ensure that the Lessee pays the earnest money deposit; pays the rent promptly,
pays the electricity and water bills within the due dates; makes no structural
alterations in the premises or causes damage to fixtures and fittings; does not
use the leased premises for immoral or illegal purposes; does not store
hazardous and inflammable materials like explosives; does not cause nuisance to
the co-tenants; maintains the premises properly and gets back the deposit
without hassles.
The Lessee, however,
shall enjoy and use the premises without giving room for Lessor's interference;
demand proper receipts from the Lessor against payments made to him, pay water
and electricity bills promptly and, at the end of the lease period, handover
the premises to the landlord in a tenantable condition; get back the earnest
deposit without any deduction, and depart on a friendly note.
All said and done
problems do crop up for reasons beyond the control of the parties concerned.
There are instances galore where landlords, for genuine or false reasons, fail
to return the deposit even after receiving proper notice from the tenant. In
either case the tenant is bound to suffer.
Certain landlords
who depend on rent income often fail to pay back the deposit amount on time.
Many do not re-invest the money. They often use it for personal needs. When the
tenant issues notice, the landlord often requests the tenant to vacate the premises
so that he could collect deposit from new tenant for paying the previous tenant
off.
For fear of losing the
deposit the tenants invariably do not vacate the premises. After vacating the
premises what happens if the landlord does not refund the deposit is the moot
question. This leads to the vicious "you-pay-then-I-leave,
you-leave-then-I-pay" circle and ends up in unwanted animosity.
If the tenant does not pay the monthly
rent, it is adjusted against the advance. For the landlord it is 'head I win,
tail you lose' situation. Even after exhausting the advance, if a tenant does
not vacate the premises, the landlord resorts to arm-twisting methods to get
back the premises. All these problems can be solved amicably through mutual
discussions or the aggrieved party can always seek remedy through legal means.
*************
No comments:
Post a Comment