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withdraw a termination notice for a tenant or a landlord

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  • 06-09-2017 12:27pm
    #1
    GGTrek
    Registered Users Posts: 834 ✭✭✭


    The question is quite simple, but I have not found an answer:

    can a landlord or a tenant of a residential letting in Ireland withdraw a termination notice without the agreement of the other party?

    For commercial lettings there is established case law that this is not possible without the other party agreeing (i.e. the other party can go to court and enforce the break notice that was provided and request damages if incurred due to the withdrawal) and the two parties are treated exactly on equal terms, but no clues at all for residential lettings.

    Two opposite cases:

    1) Landlord provides a valid termination notice, tenant finds alternative accommodation and has expenses (like moving expenses and new deposit). Landlord changes his mind due to market or personal issues, notifies the tenant about the withdrawal of the termination notice and requires rent to be paid unless tenant provides his/her termination notice (which could be a few more months of rent). I find it hard to believe that this could be allowed. Could the tenant take the landlord to the RTB and force return of deposit plus penalties/damages if landlord retained deposit because of the withdrawal?

    2) Tenant provides termination notice, he does not manage to find alternative accommodation or his plans change (for example house purchase completion date slips substantially), a few days before the termination date, he/she communicates to the landlord that he/she is withdrawing the notice and staying put. Landlord has already signed a contract with a building contractor for a renovation and now landlord is liable to pay a fine for breach of the building contract. Could the landlord take the tenant to the RTB to declare the tenant as overholding and then enforce the termination through the circuit court and make the tenant pay the fine he had to pay to the building company?

    The only piece of statute I found that refers to withdrawals of termination notices is the following: http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2004/act/27/section/28/enacted/en/html
    "(3) The condition mentioned in subsection (1) is that no notice of termination (giving the required period of notice) has been served in respect of the tenancy before the expiry of the period of 6 months mentioned in that subsection.
    (4) Despite the fact that such a notice of termination has been so served, that condition shall be regarded as satisfied if the notice is subsequently withdrawn."

    Which only means that Landlord can withdraw a termination notice provided in the first 6 months anf in such case part 4 right will be triggered for the tenant.


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