As all landlords should be aware, once a tenant is in a property for 6 months they will obtain a statutory right to a four year tenancy, otherwise known as a Part 4 tenancy. Many landlords prefer a fixed term lease, for say 12 months, thereby providing comfort in the knowledge that the rent will be coming for a fixed period and the stress of re-letting is postponed for another 12 months . In these circumstances, in addition to inserting a 6 month break clause for maximum flexibility, (allowing you to remove a tenant without reason on the break date), landlordsolutions.ie recommend inserting an additional clause which states that the landlord may terminate the tenancy at any time before the expiration of the fixed term if any of the circumstances in s.34 of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 arise. Section 34 deals with situations such as when a landlord wants to sell, refurbish or move himself or his family members into the property. This will allow the landlord to terminate the lease after the Part 4 rights have arisen. This means that the tenant is still bound by the fixed term but the landlord may terminate prior to the end of the fixed term, and importantly, during the Part 4 period, should any of the situations as laid out in s.34 arise.
Remember that without this clause the landlord would have to respect the full extent of the fixed term even though section 34 circumstances have arisen. With this clause, the landlords will have an option to break the fixed term should section 34 circumstances arise.
landlordsolutions.ie can prepare this clause in your lease for you. Contact info@landlordsolutions.ie for more info.
This document contains a general summary of recent developments and is not a definitive statement of the law. Specific legal advice must be obtained before taking action based on the summary set out herein and landlordsolutions.ie take no responsibility for any loss or damage caused in reliance of the information herein.
