Renting out an apartment? 10 highlights for a good rental agreement
Have you purchased an apartment and are you interested in renting it? A good and comprehensive rental agreement will allow you to protect your property; therefore, it is crucial that you know the important highlights of this agreement. In this regard, we would like to remind you that in 2017 the Rent Law was amended (amendment which received the name Fair Rent Law), establishing several new obligations for the landlord. We will refer to this in this article.
By Igal Mor, Adv. & Notary
Accuracy in Legal Advice. Excellence in legal support.
1. A habitable property
The Fair Rent Law imposed on the lesser an obligation to rent a suitable and safe property for living that provides adequate living conditions, for example, connection to electricity and water, a drainage system, proper doors, and windows, etc. If the parties signed a contract and the tenant discovered that the apartment does not include those mentioned above, he will be entitled to cancel the agreement. Therefore, before the landlord begins locating potential tenants, he must ensure that the apartment he owns meets the definition of a habitable property.
2. The purpose of the lease
It must be defined in the agreement that the purpose of the lease is residential only and that the tenant is not allowed to use the apartment for any other purpose. The purpose of this clause is mainly to prevent a situation in which the apartment will be used for a business, without the knowledge of the lessor and without having the appropriate approvals.
3. The rental period
The rental period will be according to the parties’ agreement when it is important to refer to the option of a contract extension in the agreement. If the parties have agreed to an extension option, the lessor is obliged by law to notify the tenant up to 90 days before the end of the contract if he wishes to exercise the extension option. The tenant is obligated to notify the landlord up to 60 days before the end of the rental period.
4. The rent
It should be clarified in the agreement what the rent is and what the form of payment is when it is customary to receive deferred checks from the tenant for the entire rental period. It is also important to note whether the monthly payment includes only the rent or ancillary fees such as water and property taxes, as is customary, for example, in the case of housing units attached to a private house.
5. Property payments
Apart from the rent, the tenant owes the property payments such as electricity, water, property tax, and house board. The tenant’s obligation for these payments should be clarified in the rental agreement, in addition to a clause stipulating that the tenant must transfer these payments in his name for the rental period.
6. Sublet
A sublet clause is one of the most critical clauses in a lease agreement, in which it must be established that the tenant is not allowed to sublease the leased property except with the lessor’s prior written consent.
7. Damage to the rental property
The Fair Rent Law states that the landlord is obliged, within a reasonable time after receiving notice from the tenant, to repair anything in the apartment that causes a real disturbance to its regular use or its use according to the agreement between the parties. If the landlord doesn’t do so, the tenant may, according to law, take care of correcting the problem and demand compensation from the landlord.
8. Changes to the property
The amendment to the law clarifies that the tenant is not allowed to make changes to the apartment unless he previously received the landlord’s consent. In light of the importance of this matter, it should be made clear in the agreement that this consent should be given prior and in writing. If the tenant has made changes to the apartment without the landlord’s consent, the landlord may require the tenant to restore the situation to its original state.
9. Guarantees
In this regard, a fundamental change was made in the law, according to which the lessor cannot demand a guarantee from the lessee that exceeds three months’ rent. Also, if he wishes to cash in, the lessor must notify the lessee about this reasonably in advance and allow him to pay the debt for which the lessor wishes to cash in the guarantee.
10. Insurance
Also, in this matter, the law has changed the usual situation, and it prohibits the lessor from obliging the lessee with building insurance and brokerage fees as long as the broker is acting on behalf of the lessor.
