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Landlord visitation rights: what you need to know
When an owner rents his accommodation to a tenant, it is no longer possible for him to access it freely. It is said that he loses the right of enjoyment of the property. Certain particular situations nevertheless authorize its visit under certain conditions. Can the owner visit my apartment? What are the regulations on this issue? Is it possible to refuse the visit of the owner in his accommodation? Studapart answers all your questions!
Can an owner come and visit my apartment?
A landlord cannot enter the accommodation he rents without the prior consent of the tenant. This situation corresponds to a home invasion and constitutes an invasion of privacy which is punishable by law.
However, the law can give a right of access to the owner in certain precise situations. An owner can thus have a right of access to sell or re-let his property, as is often the case when the end of the rental lease is approaching, for example.
The law also obliges the tenant to give access to the owner in the event of work. In this case, the owner must send you a notification by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt or deliver this notification to you personally.
This notification must indicate the nature of the work:
- energy performance improvement works
- work necessary for the maintenance or normal upkeep of the accommodation,
- work necessary to maintain decent housing, etc.
It must also indicate the planned terms of their implementation:
- Company Name
- start date of work
- duration
- need access, etc.
Note that this work may also concern common or private parts of the building, such as the installation of a digicode, for example, and that the tenant must allow access to his accommodation to the professionals responsible for preparing the work (taken measurement, etc).
In addition, the law authorizes the owner to add a clause in the rental contract allowing him to come and check periodically (once a year, for example) the state of his accommodation and/or his equipment (in the case of a furnished rental, for example).
Can I refuse the visit of my landlord?
The tenant must allow the owner access to his accommodation in the event of the sale or re-letting of the accommodation, as well as for the preparation and execution of the work. In these situations, you cannot refuse the visit of the owner. Otherwise, your refusal could be requalified as a prejudice for the owner and you expose yourself to the risk that he will claim damages from you (to compensate for the loss of a sale or re-letting, for example).
In any case, the landlord must not enter without express permission, let alone force entry into the accommodation. If the tenant refuses his visit, legal recourse can be mobilized. The tenant will then be blamed for not respecting the law or the contractual provisions (when a visit clause is provided for in the lease contract, for example).
When can the owner show?
To show his apartment, the owner must always obtain the authorization of the tenant. The tenant is the only one who can give a right of visit to the owner. Moreover, it is not a right of visit strictly speaking, but rather a “right of access” subject to certain conditions.
There are, in fact, a certain number of rules which govern the visits of the owner to his accommodation. These visits can only be organized during the week, they cannot be organized on Sundays and public holidays. In addition, during working days, visits must not exceed a duration of two hours.
In general, the easiest way is to agree beforehand on the available time slots. It is also possible for you to authorize the owner to enter the apartment in your absence (by providing him with a duplicate of the keys to the accommodation or by authorizing him to use his own if he has one).
What are the tenant's obligations for visits?
There are, as we have seen, a certain number of situations which authorize the owner to make visits to his accommodation (whether during the term of the lease contract or at the end of the lease). These access rights are regulated by law and by the rental contract. You therefore have an obligation to respect the contractual provisions if a visit clause has been provided for in the lease contract.
In any case, remember that the landlord cannot enter the accommodation without your explicit consent. This even applies in the event of (in the event of water damage, for example). To ensure good relations throughout the rental, we advise you to give priority to discussion and find arrangements together on time slots and terms of visit!
