Rental Agreement with Landlord
By northernlad •
I have recently found a nice villa at an excellent price. i agreed a 1 year contract with the real estate company,but was a little surpprised when i got the contract for review today.
one of the clauses said that in event of me leaving the property before the lease expiry date, i must pay all oustanding balance! this could be thousands and thousands!! the real estate company says the landlord does not want to remove this.
is this clause normal?
someone mentioned today that qatari law says that if you give 2 months notice for departing your property, then you are eligible for your remaining rental cheques and your deposit back.
please can someone confirm before i sign on the dotted line.............!
thanks all. looks like i will bite the bullet and go for it!
hope the wife and kiddies like it!!!!
You can request what is called a "diplomatic clause", which is effectively permission to leave if (and only if) you are transferred by your employer to another country. Some landlords will allow a diplomatic clause and others will not.
Other than that, yes, the contract is normal. If you are really concerned about it, one thing you can do is to put a clause in the contract that allows you to go month-to-month after the first year or request that you be able to get out of the contract (after that first year) with sixty days notice; both of these are fairly normal lease terms. However, going month-to-month leaves you open to rental increases every month unless there is something in the contract that governs the rate increases.
Is unlikely that the landlord will allow you to rent the place out to Joe Schmo if you depart early. There are rental costs for the landlord associated with another lease (attorneys, painting, cleaning, etc.) and. . .think about it. . .would you want someone living in your house to find another tenant for you?
Good luck. . .hope you are not transferred anytime soon!
Expat Sueño
I could understand loosing your deposit, because you did not meet the 1 year requirement, but to pay for the rest of the year, is just armed robbery, greed and selfishness.
What happens after your 1 year is up? Could you pay your rent month to month? or Do you have to renew the contract?
IF I was you, I will speak DIRECTLY with the landlord and negotiate the CONTRACT and not those agents. You don't loose anything with a simple NO!
“Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful,”
You can only escape this if your employment is terminated and hence you have to leave the country
Consult the Rental Disputes Committee near Muntaza signal
===================================== http://www.qatarliving.com/node/58409
It is strange, im not sure what you can do in this case, most countries you can give at least one to two months notice or you can find other tenants to carry out your contract. You have to find out what the law says about this in Qatar,before you present your case to the landlord.
Try doing a search on QL to se if its been discussed before here and where the law stands on this issue in Qatar.
yeah, that is what i asked for but they werent having it!
Although we sign a yearly contract, there is a clause where two months notice can be given if you need to vacate the property.
yes, i appreciate that, but surely there is a get out clause of somewhat less value in case the tennant needs to depart before the end of lease.
It would be my understanding that if you sign a lease for a year you are responsible for the rent for a year! This certainly applies to any place I've ever lived. If the landlord wants to be gracious later on about early termination then you are lucky.