Problem with lease

whatawaster

Myself and my girlfriend have just moved into a new apartment.

Because I was busy at work, she brought the deposit etc to the agent’s office and she signed the lease (as did the agent) and brought it home for me to sign and return.

I got a shock when I read it (to say the least).

It obligates the tenant to repair all defects, and the tenant is liable to bear the cost of these. In the event of an appliance breaking down, the tenant is also liable.

It says the landlord is only responsible for repairs of the roof and exterior.

I smelled bull****

So I looked up the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 (which the lease itself cites). That act, from my reading of it anyway, obligates landlords to carry structural and interior repairs unless they have arisen through the fault of the tenant.

What really annoys me is that I asked the landlord to email me a copy of the lease before the day we were to sign it, but he never did.


I guess I have two questions:
1) Given that the agreement is between the landlord and two named tenants and I haven’t signed the lease yet, is it a valid contract?
2) Do the terms of the lease, which appear to contradict the legislation, override the act? So if indeed we are stuck with this lease, is it enforceable?

We really love the place, but I’m not having this (and I’ve let the landlord know as much and have asked for a new lease and am awaiting his reply)

Thanks

sweetie

haven't you a certain time to legally back out of the contract? I'd contact threshold immediately to find out your rights but it is a ridiculous contract.

whatawaster

sweetie wrote: »

haven't you a certain time to legally back out of the contract? I'd contact threshold immediately to find out your rights but it is a ridiculous contract.

Thanks

I’ll look into that, but to be honest I don’t want to completely back out because we both really want to live in this place. I would just like a different lease.

Grolschevik

As far as I'm aware, you cannot contract out of your legal rights (for example, you cannot sell yourself into slavery), so I'd very much doubt that the lease overrules the act.

odds_on

whatawaster wrote: »

Myself and my girlfriend have just moved into a new apartment.

Because I was busy at work, she brought the deposit etc to the agent’s office and she signed the lease (as did the agent) and brought it home for me to sign and return.

I got a shock when I read it (to say the least).

It obligates the tenant to repair all defects, and the tenant is liable to bear the cost of these. In the event of an appliance breaking down, the tenant is also liable.

It says the landlord is only responsible for repairs of the roof and exterior.

I smelled bull****

So I looked up the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 (which the lease itself cites). That act, from my reading of it anyway, obligates landlords to carry structural and interior repairs unless they have arisen through the fault of the tenant.

What really annoys me is that I asked the landlord to email me a copy of the lease before the day we were to sign it, but he never did.

I guess I have two questions:
1) Given that the agreement is between the landlord and two named tenants and I haven’t signed the lease yet, is it a valid contract?
2) Do the terms of the lease, which appear to contradict the legislation, override the act? So if indeed we are stuck with this lease, is it enforceable?

We really love the place, but I’m not having this (and I’ve let the landlord know as much and have asked for a new lease and am awaiting his reply)

Thanks

It is not only the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 that governs the rental laws of rented properties.

There is the S.I. No. 534/2008 — Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2008 and amendment of 2009. These regulations cover such items as:
6. Sanitary Facilities
7. Heating Facilities
8. Food Preparation and Storage and Laundry
9. Ventilation
10. Lighting
11. Fire Safety
12. Refuse Facilities
13. Electricity and Gas

They also state that the landlord is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep/repair of many items (save where the fault or damage was caused by the tenant).

Any clause in a lease which tries to negate a landlord's responsibility in this regard is not valid. Therefore, IMHO, there is no problem (without having seen the lease) in signing it.

It is probable that the landlord is a self-styled lease writer and is not fully aware of his obligations nor that the law can over-ride any clause he may include if that clause is against the law. It is possible that he knows what he meant but failed to put that correctly in writing.

Kosseegan

The problem is not with the lease, it is with your girlfriend. Signing a legally binding document without reading it is lunatic. What other trouble is she going to walk you into? This thread should be moved to Relationships.

djimi

Walk away from that lease immediately. If the landlord is that much of a cowboy that they are trying to make you sign responsbility for all repairs then alarm bells would be ringing as to what other kind of nonsense they will try and pull. Also, even if you get the clause removed from the lease I would be asking myself if the landlord would be able to afford to do any repairs if necessary, or if they would be willing to.

Its possible they have a clause like that in there because they know they cannot afford the upkeep of the accomodation.

This is one accomodation I wouldnt touch with a bargepole. The lease isnt binding until both parties named on it have signed it, so tear it up and walk away.

killers1

If you have the original copy of the lease (signed by the Agent & your girlfriend) in your hands I'd be inclined to throw it in the bin and tell them to draw up a new one!

pawnacide

Can you print the exact wording of the clause please ?