Landlords beware! Consider early warning when terminating lease

Housing landlords can find themselves in a situation where tenants are no longer paying the rent on time. Or even stop paying at all. In such a case, it may be desirable for landlords to take the terminate lease agreement. A first step in addition to collection of rent receivable, is often to try to terminate the lease by mutual agreement with the tenant. This is then done by mutual agreement. But what if the tenant does not agree to terminate the lease? In this blog tenancy law lawyer Conner Canters the options for terminating the lease in the case of a defaulting tenant. Conner also explains what early detection is and why it is so important.

Dissolution of the lease

A tenant enjoys rent protection, which often makes it difficult for landlords to terminate the lease. It is usually not possible for the landlord to simply terminate the lease. Therefore, the landlord will have to claim dissolution of the lease at the subdistrict court. In principle, it is assumed that dissolution can be granted in cases of rent arrears of three months or more. In such cases, the subdistrict court usually grants the claim to dissolve the lease.

Clearance of property

In a claim for dissolution of the lease, almost always eviction of the leased property to be claimed. This is because the termination of the lease in itself does not provide a title to vacate the dwelling. In the event that the tenant refuses to leave the property, this then poses a problem, as there is then no authority to vacate the property (or have it vacated) and the tenant remains in the property. Therefore, it is important to always demand eviction of the property in case the tenant does not leave voluntarily after the termination of the lease. The bailiff then has a title to vacate the property. There is then no need to start another procedure.

Early detection of debt tenant residential property before dissolution

Since 2021, there is an obligation for landlords to inform the municipality at an early stage of a tenant's arrears (Municipal Debt Relief Act). The landlord should take the following steps regarding early detection of debt:

1. At least one written payment reminder have been sent to the tenant.
2. The landlord must have attempted to get in personal contact with the tenant. The tenant must then be informed of the options for preventing and ending rent arrears.
3. The landlord must make the tenant aware of debt relief options. So this point is fairly similar to the previous point.
4. The landlord must check with the tenant whether the contact information may be passed on to the municipality.

These are the steps the landlord must go through regarding early debt detection. The interpretation of this is not always black and white nor the same. Moreover, the courts in the Netherlands do not seem to be on the same page regarding this obligation of the landlord. This can be explained by the fact that there is no sanction in the law for not complying with this obligation.

In some cases, the court takes a lenient approach to the early warning debt obligation, while in other cases the court applies it strictly. For example, the court may reject the claimed dissolution and eviction if it appears that the landlord has not complied with the obligations around early warning, even if there is a three-month rent arrears or longer. Therefore, it is important for the landlord to carefully go through the steps surrounding early warning.

Rent law lawyer for dissolution of lease agreement

Careful preparation for litigation is very important. Do you need advice on lease dissolution and early debt notification obligations? The rent law lawyer of Lexys is at your service.