How to estimate a tenant's notice term

If you're going to lease your property to the next tenant, you may do it only after making the notice to the current one. Though the law contains a legal term, actually it's not so easy. The real estate agency Glamour Apartments is explaining how to estimate the time for your tenant's notice.

Term of a written notice

Before placing a new advertising about your property rental you have to look into the term of your current tenant's notice. Its expiration date starts from the date when the tenant received the letter on the rental contract termination.

Important: if you just put the letter into a mailbox, this day will not be considered as a legal date of the notice, so send a registered letter with receipt confirmation.

The law is formal and based on the document from the 6th of July 1989: “every notice on rent must be sent within 3 months, if it's a request for rental prolongation from a tenant. Though the term is written clear, it's not necessary for a tenant to have a concrete reason for such a request to a landlord.”

Estimate time of your tenant's notice

As you confirm that you've received the notice on the contract termination, the 3 months legal period is getting started. Here you to decide about placing a new advertising about your apartment lease in order to not getting a long pause between two tenants – the outgoing and the new one.

Rental term in France: it's important for property owners that rental term was minimal. In France this period depends on a location and a property itself, but in general it's about 5 weeks in the country.

Besides, in some specific cases your tenant may ask you to shorten the notice term. Actually, the law provides that the time of notice may be shortened from 3 to 1 month if there is one of the following cases:

• furnished rental;
• your tenant is elder 60;
• your tenant has to change accommodation by medical reasons;
• your tenant is paid a disability grant;
• your tenant has just found a job;
• your tenant has just been fired;
• your tenant receives RSA;
• your tenant has just been moved to a new job location.

In order that the property owner could take this request into consideration, a tenant has to give the documents which confirm that he (she) is really connected with one of these situations.

In fact, in such a case (to estimate a notice term, and to count the sums that cover all costs before you get the apartment's keys) you have to take into account the day when you receive the letter with request of the contract termination. The 1-month period is counted from this date, but not from the date when the letter was sent, the next day after you'd received it. Only the day when you received the letter.

“Hot” areas (supply and demand are not balanced)

The last aspect which can prejudice the notice term – location of your property. If it's in a “hot” district, the law is different.

In the law is said about a “narrow zone” for all municipalities where supply and demand are not balanced. There is a real disproportion on the market – number of offer is less than requests. Mainly it concerns big cities and their agglomerations. By the reason that the “hot” areas are in almost all regions of France, the 1-month period of the notice (instead of the 3 months) is automatically used without the need to ask it from a current tenant.

Will repeat, the notice term starts on the day when you've received a registered letter from the tenant in which he (she) informs you about intention to terminate the contract of lease.

Typical notice term is 3 months. But every rule has its exceptions! Lots of cases of rental termination need the notice in one month. Get to know the legal feature and don't wait longer. After receipt of the notice on rent termination take care of the search of a new tenant – just place your free advertising on the site of Glamour Apartments agency.