Can Landlords Ask Tenants To Vacate House Before 11-month Agreement? What Lawyer Says

Sneha, an employed woman, rented accommodation in a Noida Sector 34 society. Before she shifted to the rented apartment, the landlord told her that the facilities, including inverter, geyser, and RO, were new and in case of any requirement to repair them, the tenant would need to invest.

Within three days of moving into the house, both RO and inverter were found to be defective and old. This led to a dispute between the landlord and the tenant. After 6 months, Sneha was asked to vacate the house despite the mention of 11 months of tenure in the rent agreement. Now, the question arises – can the landlord ask the tenant to vacate the house before the tenure mentioned in the rent agreement, i.e., 11 months?

Nishant Rai, civil cases lawyer in Delhi High Court, says that renting out houses has become a source of income in Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities of the country and both residential and commercial properties are rented out. However, there are not enough rules and regulations regarding the rent agreement as it mentions only the basic necessities.

Nishant also said that in India, the process of renting houses mostly involves mutual understanding between landlord and tenant but the last few years saw the rent agreements being made in cities, including Delhi-NCR. Further, shedding light on rent agreements, he said that the rent agreement is a legal document and it lays out various conditions which both parties have to follow.

The advocate says that if the agreement mentions 11 months of tenure, then within that period, the tenant and landlord are in a contractual agreement. “Within this period, the rentals cannot be hiked randomly by the landlord. But in this case, the landlord can ask the tenants to serve the notice period and vacate as per the contract,” said the lawyer. However, in case of forceful eviction or any dispute, the tenant also has the right to raise his objection.

To avoid the same, some rent agreements also include lock-in periods. These lock-in periods are for specific times during which both the landlord and the tenant are committed to the agreement and neither party can serve notice during the term.

In such situations, no action can be taken against the tenant or the landlord. However, in cases of other problems, tenants can seek help from the police and the law.