Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa July 2016 | Page 26

LEGAL

Tenant and Landlord Relations
Getting to grips with the Rental Housing Amendment Act
BY SIMON DIPPENAAR

W

e recently wrote about the Rental Housing
Amendment Act 35 of 2014, still to be
gazetted. It seems the article has focused
the minds of our clients and we’ve had requests for
more information on what the Amendment Act
means for both landlords and tenants. So we will set
out here what we see as the most important points.

Obligations of the landlord

Arguably the most significant change in legislation is
the onus on the landlord to provide a written lease
agreement, and the criminalisation of the failure to
do so. This strikes us as a heavy-handed means to a
reasonable end; and an alternative approach might be
the provision of a default lease agreement enforceable
in law in the absence of a written lease. This would
encourage landlords to draw up written agreements
if they want to be sure of including their own clauses,
but not tie up court time enforcing an unnecessary
criminal law should they be negligent in drafting the
lease. But meanwhile, if you are a landlord, it is your
responsibility to provide your tenant with a lease in
writing.
The lease must contain, at a minimum, the street
address of the premises, the rights and obligations of
the landlord and tenant (which must comply with the
Act), the deposit amount, the rental amount, any other
charges, the frequency of payment and the process to
follow if escalation of complaints is necessary.
Landlords are also obliged to ensure the tenant’s
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JULY 2016 SA Real Estate Investor

deposit is lodged in an interest-bearing account and
to repay the deposit plus interest within seven days
of the expiry of the lease. During the course of the
tenancy the tenant is entitled to request written proof
of interest earned on the deposit.
At the start of the lease, landlords must undertake
to inspect the property with the tenant to identify
any damages or defects. The tenant may insist that
sub-standard conditions are rectified before moving
in, and the landlord must comply. If the landlord
fails to inspect the property with the tenant, then it
is assumed that the property is in good condition.
Allowance for post-rental inspection is also included
in this section of the Act.

Rights of the tenant

In addition to the rights of the tenant implied in the
landlord’s obligations above, there are several other
tenant’s rights enshrined in the Amendment Act, not
forgetting that the tenant also has obligations.
The privacy of tenants is thoroughly protected in
the legislation. While landlords reserve the right to
inspect the property from time to time, sufficient
advance notice must be given. Unannounced, ‘spot’
inspections are not permitted, nor is a search of the
premises, unless there is considerable reason to suspect
misconduct and a court order has been obtained.
Tenants are entitled to written receipts for all
payments made to the landlord, and to receipts for
any repairs carried out to the property that may be
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