Navigating Residential Evictions

Residential evictions are unfortunately a common occurrence, particularly in times of recession and rising living costs. Furthermore, a tenant refusing to vacate the premises often goes hand in hand with the same tenant being in arrears with unpaid rental and utility bills, thereby giving rise to a damages claim and eviction proceedings.

To add insult to injury, the eviction procedure is not a particularly quick process. It involves two court applications, the first being the authorisation of an eviction notice to be served upon the tenant, and the second part being the actual eviction application where, if successful, the court will set a date for the tenant to vacate the premises. If the tenant then fails to leave the premises, the Sheriff will remove the tenant and all other occupants within the premises. How quickly this happens is largely dependent both on your attorney and the court availability for the two application dates.

This procedure can be especially traumatic if you depend on this rental income to pay the bond on the property, or for your own living expenses. Whilst eviction applications can be brought on an urgent basis, these are only in exceptional circumstances as the landlord would essentially be “jumping the queue” in front of other litigants.

Reducing your risk as Landlord

Whilst you can never remove all of your risk in letting premises, you can lessen this risk by doing the following:

A Clear and Detailed Lease

Ensure that you have a clear and detailed lease in place which, amongst other clauses, provides for immediate termination of the contract should the tenant default with rental obligations, and provides for all costs to be borne by a tenant should legal action be instituted.

Three Months’ Deposit

Ask for three months’ deposit from the tenant, and place these monies in an interest bearing account. This will at least give you some breathing space should the worst happen.

Monitor Rental and Utility Payments

Stay on top of all rental and utility payments made by the tenant. Whilst there should be some flexibility in allowing good tenants some latitude both to maintain good relations and to avoid litigation, arrears can quickly spiral out of control, especially given the nature and timeframe of the eviction process.

Regular Maintenance

Ensure that you fulfil your obligations as a landlord in terms of the Rental Housing Act, particularly in regard to maintenance of the property. This is the most common reason given by tenants defaulting with their rental payments.

Seek Legal Advice

Get legal advice before embarking on “informal” (read “unlawful”) methods, such as removing doors, window frames, gates and locks, cutting electricity and water to the premises, or encouraging insect infestations!

For professional and experienced litigation advice at a reasonable rate, contact Chris Salmon on 031 266 2530 or chris@fouriestott.co.za

Or complete an online enquiry and we will get in touch with you.