Understanding your French rental contract

The lease agreement is a written document that sets out the operating rules for the rental as well as the rights and obligations of the lessor and the tenant. Since August 1, 2015 and the ALUR law, the lease contract must be accompanied by an explanatory note and it must drawn up according to a standard model. In French, the lease contract is commonly called “le bail”.

Contract duration and give leave

The duration of a rental contract is a minimum of one year for furnished accommodation, or three years for empty accommodation, as long as the accommodation is your main residence. If the owner is a legal entity, the term of the lease is six years. These periods correspond to the length of time during which the owner will not be able to give you leave. On the other hand, you can give leave at any time by respecting a notice of 1 month for furnished accommodation, and 3 months by default for unfurnished accommodation.

Expiry of the lease

When the landlord wishes, at the end of the lease, to give you leave, he must respect a 6 months notice period. The leave must be motivated by one of these 3 reasons : sale, repossession or legitimate and serious reason (for example, repeated non payment of rent). If the landlord has not expressed his wish to take back the dwelling to occupy or sell it at the end of the lease, or for a serious and legitimate reason, the contract with the current tenant in place is tacitly renewed for a period of three years. It is therefore not necessary to provide for a new contract : the lease continues under the conditions provided for in the initial contract.

For unfurnished housing, here are the essential clauses

• The name and address of the owner and his potential representative
• The name of the tenant(s)
• The description of the dwelling (without forgetting the cellar, garage, garden or other outbuildings)
• The list of common areas
• The living area
• The address of the accommodation
• The duration of the rental and the date from which the tenant has the dwelling at his disposal
• The purpose of the leased space, that is to say the use that will be made of it (residential or mixed residential and professional use)
• The amount and terms of payment of the rent, as well as the conditions of its possible revision. You must indicate the amount of the security deposit, if one is required, and indicate that you have already paid it if this was the case. The nature and the amount of any work that may have been carried out in the accommodation since the end of the last rental period must also be indicated.

Pay attention to the content of the lease

It is important to make sure that the rental charges are detailed in the rental contract and that it does not include any abusive clauses. Here are some examples of unfair terms, which must not appear in rental contracts signed after March 2014 :

• Prohibits the keeping of a domestic animal
• Provides for automatic renewal or renewal for a lease term of less than 3 years
• The landlord imposes on the tenant the choice of insurance
• The lease may not impose a charge for late payment of rent in the event of a reminder
• It is also impossible to foresee that the tenant is automatically responsible for the degradations noted in the housing

Rental expenses

When the rent “including charges” is indicated, this means that it is calculated taking into account the rental charges, corresponding in particular to energy expenses (water, electricity, gas, heating), maintenance to the commons areas and rental taxes (household waste collection…).

These charges are said to be recoverable because the owner pays them by re-invoicing them to the tenant. Based on the total amount of the previous year’s charges, an annual provision for charges is calculated on the basis of this estimate.

Once a year, the owner adjusts expenses according to what he has actually paid. A statement indicating each type of charge is sent to the tenant one month before the regularization. During the following 6 months, supporting documents such as gas or repairs bills paid by the condominium can be claimed by the tenant.

In case of dispute

In case of conflict between the lessor and his tenant, it is recommended to try to find an amicable solution. In the event of failure, it is sometimes necessary to attempt conciliation, to then have the right to seize the judge. The dead line to referral depend on the nature to the dispute.

• The formal notice : it is a letter which is addressed to the opposing party in order to obtain the execution of an obligation (payment of a sum, realization of work…). This letter must include the reason for the disagreement, a history of the facts and propose a deadline for settling the dispute. It must be sent with acknowledgement of receipt. If the formal notice is not sufficient to settle the disagreement, the letter will represent an essential document when the matter is referred to the departmental conciliation commission.
• The Conciliation Commission : it is an institution in charge of finding an amicable settlement to disputes between landlords and tenants. This body is competent to deal with all rentals used as a main residence. Whether they are rented furnished or unfurnished. The commission examines disputes relating to rent and charges, but also concerning rental repairs, security deposits, criteria for housing decency or even the state of the premises. There is a commission in each department.
• The Tribunal d’Instance (judicial) : for the settlement of disputes, the tenant and the owner can directly apply to the Tribunal d’Instance. Two types of actions can then be envisaged : – An enforceable action consisting of demanding the execution of the contract and forcing one of the parties to perform its obligations. – A resolutory action to request the cancellation of the lease and terminate the contract.

The competent court is from the place of the geographical location of accommodation. The defense of each of the parties can be made alone, be assisted or represented by one of his relatives. The presence of a lawyer is not compulsory.