Every landlord may at some stage find themself in the position where they need to evict a delinquent tenant failing to meet their rental obligations.
Going through the eviction process can be one of the most stressful periods in a landlord’s life. For this reason, we here at Kaplan Blumberg have put together a list of dos and don’ts for the landlords out there who need to make a decision on whether to proceed with the eviction of a tenant or if you want some information on the subject to keep it in the back pocket for a rainy day.
1. Take action early on.
Don’t allow the tenant to accumulate excessive rental arrears before starting the eviction process. It can take anywhere between 3 to 6 months to obtain an eviction order, depending on whether the tenant takes any steps to frustrate the process. The sooner the landlord takes action, the less financial damage they may suffer in the end.
2. Don’t take matters into your own hands.
If you try to kick the tenant out without following the proper legal process, the tenant then has the ability to regain possession of the property by way of a spoliation application. If the tenant qualifies for Legal Aid, the organisation can proceed with the spoliation application on the tenant’s behalf, free of charge.
3. Be careful about issuing the tenant with written notices that you have prepared yourself.
It often happens that landlords will cancel the lease agreement with notices that they have prepared personally. Once our firm is approached to institute an eviction application, the cancellation of the lease agreement may not have been done correctly. This means that we need to start the process from the beginning, which can set the matter back by up to 6 weeks or more, depending on the terms of the lease agreement.
4. Pursue the rental arrears before the tenant vacates the property.
Make sure that you institute legal action against the tenant for the arrears, and have the Sheriff attach their assets within the property as security before they vacate the property. Once they move out, you might not be able to find them.
If you have a tenant who has stopped paying rent, come and see us today so that we can help you get them out of your property.
Contact our professionals at 041 363 6044 or info@kaplans.co.za for sound legal advice.