5 Important Facts for Landlords to Remember

Landlords have to ensure that they maintain their property and is vital to ensure that only damages can be deducted off the deposit and not for general wear and tear. The landlord needs to ensure that the property is in a condition that is reasonably fit for human habitation as well as maintain the outside of the dwelling including walls and roof. Maintain the electrical, plumbing, Sanitary in good order and repair any damage caused by fair wear and tear. This is clearly defined in the Unfair Practices regulations act 50 of 1999.

In accordance with the rental housing act upon expiry of the lease the landlord may apply the deposit and interest towards the payment of all amounts for which the tenant is liable under the said lease, which includes the reasonable cost of repairing damage to the dwelling during the lease period and then this must be refunded no later than 14 days and all relevant receipts which indicate the costs which the landlord incurred must be available to the tenant for inspection as proof of such costs incurred by the landlord.

Landlords are obligated by law to provide water, electricity or gas services to a tenant. It is important to remember that as a landlord you may not cause the non-supply or interrupted supply of services to a dwelling without a court order unless it is an emergency or for maintenance or repairs whereby the tenant needs to be issued with reasonable notice. It is vital for landlords to remember that they may only charge the tenant for exact amount of services consumed in the dwelling if the dwelling is separately metered.

As a Landlord you may not change locks or doors which provide access to the dwelling - unless it is to replace the locks due to wear and tear or unless duplicate keys are provided to the other immediately upon such change of locks. You may not instruct your agent to change locks or deny the tenant access to their property unless there is a court order.

The tenant needs to be furnished with a copy of the most recent body corporate rules, it is vital that you provide this to your agent which can be passed onto the tenant. Should tenant breach any of the rules and warnings be issued by the body corporate it will be difficult to enforce unless the landlord or agent can prove that the tenant did, in fact, receive a copy of the rules.

08 Jul 2019
Author Seeff Blouberg

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