Anybody who has ever leased a property in Jersey will have heard the horror stories about unscrupulous landlords who refused to hand back the deposit, or charged an extra month's rent, or wandered in and out of the property at will, and in truth, you have very little recourse in the courts without incurring costs, though proposals are afoot in the States. In the meantime, there are things you can do to protect yourself.

Getting Your Deposit Back

The landlord takes a deposit to protect himself against any damage caused by the tenant. The unscrupulous landlord takes it as his right. Changes to the law are expected to include the stipulation that a 'schedule of condition' - a report on the state of the property at the outset - be mandatory in all lease agreements. Until then there is nothing preventing a tenant from having his own schedule of condition attached to a new lease. For the purposes of a short residential lease, if the landlord will not or cannot provide a formal schedule of condition then a tenant could take digital photographs of each room, particularly focusing on any existing damage (i.e. marks on walls, stains on carpets or cracked tiles). A print out of the photographs could then be stapled to the back of each copy of the lease to form a record of the state of the property at the start of the lease.

The lease ought to set out what fair wear and tear is acceptable and include details of any of the landlord's fixtures and fittings. A landlord should expect the property to have some wear and tear from normal residential activities and cannot reasonably expect a tenant to put the property back into mint condition unless the lease specifically provides for this.

Ideally, a tenant should ask for the lease to include a provision that they are not expected to put the property in any better state of repair than it was at the start. It is not unusual for a lease to include the provision that the property and carpets should be professionally cleaned by a tenant at the end of the lease and this additional cost should be factored into the moving costs when the lease ends.

The lease should set out how the deposit monies will be held. If the landlord rather than an agent is holding the monies it is preferable for them to be held in a separate account. It is not open to a tenant to refuse to pay their last month's rental and attempt to offset this against the deposit monies as this would then leave the landlord insufficient monies to repair any damage to the property.

Giving Notice

You don't want to end up paying rent unnecessarily, and most times you can avoid doing so by simply making sure you have read the lease agreement carefully. Although many leases are for simple fixed terms, some enable the tenant to terminate the lease by giving notice to the landlord. It is important to check how the notice should be given. For example, is it necessary to give notice in writing to the landlord or their agent? Does the notice period start from when the notice letter is received by the landlord or from the 1st day of the following month? Small factors such as when your landlord will start counting your notice period from can have a big impact on the amount of rental you will owe during your last month.

You Can't Come In?

In Jersey there are currently two different types of residential occupation. One for those who have Jersey Residential Qualifications and another for those who do not. If you are taking a property on an unqualified licence then you will not have exclusive occupation of the property and your landlord must retain a right of free access the property at all times.

If however you hold Residential Housing Qualifications then you can take a lease with exclusive occupation. In other words, he's not allowed in without giving you notice. If you are to have exclusive occupation make sure the parts of the property you are going to live in are clearly identified in the lease. The definition should include details as to whether there is access to any garden, parking spaces and whether you are allowed to use the attic space. If a part of the property is not included in the definition then there is potential for dispute with the landlord.

And Finally...

There should be a clear statement of who will be paying for which property expenses. Usually in a residential lease the landlord will be pay the foncier rates, buildings insurance and exterior upkeep and repairs to the property with the tenant paying the occupier rates, contents insurance and internal upkeep and repairs. The tenant should make sure they have checked who is to pay for which item so there are no nasty surprises once the lease is signed up. A tenant should also check for any specific items which they will be responsible for such as boiler maintenance.

In conclusion, and I cannot stress this enough, the onus is on you to read the lease through before you sign it. By having a clear understanding of the terms of the lease before you sign up, and by ensuring there is a clear statement of the condition of the property at the outset, you should be able to protect yourself from any dodgy landlords.

This article was originally published in JEP - Homelife, September 2012

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.