John

Major aspects of rent agreement

In case you are giving your home on rent or taking a home on rent, the rent agreement plays a pivotal role in determining the rights of the owner and tenant. The rent agreement, entered into between the owner and the tenant, is the agreement that contains the terms and conditions subject to which the property has been leased by the owner to the tenant.

Before entering into a lease agreement, the tenant should ensure that the owner has proper title of the property. The owner should either be the owner of the property or an authorized power of attorney holder. The agreement should be signed by the owner himself or his duly authorized power of attorney.

Common clauses contained in a rent agreement are related to:

• Details of the owner and the tenant and their addresses
• Details of property leased - its location and identification details
• Declaration by the owner that he is either the owner of the property or is duly authorized by the owner to give the property on lease
• The effective date of commencement of the rent agreement and duration
• Term of the lease
• The lease rent and the mode of payment
• Security deposit amount paid, and whether it is interest-free or not and the circumstances when it is refundable
• Advance rent payable, if any, and the mode of its adjustment
• Rent increment clause
• When the rent can be increased and at what rates
• Facilities to be included in the rent
• Who has access to the common area, garden area etc
• Payment of municipal dues, property and house taxes
• Maintenance charges to be paid to the society
• Routine repair and maintenance expenses of the house
• Fixtures and fittings to be provided by the owner or not
• Grounds of termination of the agreement
• Notice period required for termination of the lease
• Registration expenses of lease deed
• Renewable clauses
• Details of parking space
• Details of terrace rights
• Details of society entry charges payable

The other terms would depend upon the commercial terms which have been agreed to between the parties . Under the Registration Act, leases of property of more than one year need to be registered. The stamp duty payable depends on the rates prevailing in the respective States.

Praneet

Hi John,

I am a new member. I just faced a problem regarding the tenant-landlord lease agreement.
I am resing in Gurgaon now and three months back I was living in noida. I left Noida at Nov'07. Yesterday (06-02-2008) I got a legal notice from SDM office/Noida court in which it is mentioned that I have not filled the 3306/- registartion fees for the lease agreement between me and my previous landlord.

Firstly, I wish to know after leaving the place should I be involved in this matter.
then as I know only landlord is responsible for lease agreement registartion, then how I am liable for this agreement registration fees submission.

What step should I take in this regard.

Praneet