FOR TENANTS

YOUR RIGHTS

AND

OBLIGATIONS

Created by Josip Kustera

INTRO

You can't fight for your rights if you don't know what they are.

- John Roberts

This Resource Guide is created to help tenants know and understand their rights and obligations.

The main resources we used to create this Guide are:

What will you learn?

Your rights as a tenant

Your main legal rights and responsibilities as a tenant come from landlord and tenant law, as well as from any lease or tenancy agreement you have with your landlord.

Your obligations

Learn about your obligations as a tenant. You should note that it may be more difficult to assert your rights if you have broken conditions of your tenancy.

The Equal Status Acts and anti-discrimination regulations

Learn what are the grounds for discrimination.

Online scams

Learn how to spot, avoid and protect yourself from online scams.

Learn what to do if you have been scammed online.

Links and Resources

At the end of the Guide you will find a list of useful links and resources related to your rights, obligations and tenant-landlord laws, regulations and policies.

Part 1

Rights as a private tenant

This section explains your main rights as a private tenant

Photo by Toa Heftiba

You are entitled to quiet and exclusive enjoyment of your home

No one is allow to enter your home without permission - if the landlord or agent need to enter the property they need to request access from you.

There is no legal minimum period of notice that must be given. It is a matter of what is agreed between both you and your landlord/agent.

Landlord can enter your home without persimmon only in event of an emergency.

If noise from other tenants or neighbours is disturbing you, ask them to stop and also inform your landlord. If this does not work, you can make a formal complaint.

While the law does not specifically mention an exact level or standard of noise that is illegal, it is clear that if neighbourhood noise is affecting your quality of life, then you have a right to complain.

You are entitled to certain minimum standards of accommodation

You have the right to a property that is in a good condition.

Regulations 7 requires private landlords to provide access to a washing machine and a clothes-dryer if the dwelling does not have a private garden or yard.

They must also provide facilities for cooking and for the hygienic storage of food, to include the following: 4-ring hob with oven and grill, cooker hood or extractor fan, fridge and freezer, microwave oven, kitchen cupboards that are suitable and adequate for storing food, sink with mains water supply, hot water and draining area.

The property must have cold and hot water.

Bathroom and toilet must be separated from the bedroom

You are entitled to a rent book

A rent book is a document that records details about the tenancy and notes all rent payments that you make.

If you are living in rented accommodation you are entitled to get a rent book, unless you are renting a room in your landlord’s home.

If you are paying the rent is cash - landlord must provide you with a rent book and a receipt of payment.

If you are paying the rent by bank transfer you can use your bank statement as a proof of payment.

It is your landlord's responsibility to give you a rent book.

Rent Book example

More info about Rent Book find at Citizen Information

You have the right to contact the landlord or their agent at any reasonable times

You have the right to know the contact details about your landlord or agent.

You have the right to contact the landlord or agent for any reason concerning your tenancy.

It is your landlords/agents responsibility to provide you with their up to date contact details.

If you are renting from the agency you have the right to know who is your landlord and their contact details.

You are entitled to be reimbursed for repairs that you carry out that are the landlord's responsibility

If you spent money to pay for any damage that is your landlord's responsibility he must pay you back.

Before doing any repairs you must contact the landlord/agent to inform them about the damage.

If the landlord/agent does not fix the damage in a timely manner and after being contacted several times you can proceed to pay for repairs yourself.

As a proof keep all receipts and messages you have sent to the landlord/agent.

Repairs that are the landlord's responsibility are:

The quality and condition of the accommodation, any common areas, furnishings and appliances,

2. Ventilation and lighting,

3. Water supplies, sanitary facilities and drainage,

4. Facilities for heating and cooking,

5. Facilities for the storage and the preparation of food.

You are entitled to have visitors to stay overnight or for short periods

Unless specifically forbidden in your tenancy agreement.

You must tell your landlord if you have an extra person moving in.

If this results in a rent increase you must pay to the landlord an amount equal to the amount of that increase.

You are not allowed to assign or sub-let the tenancy without the written consent of the landlord.

You are entitled to a certain amount of notice of the termination of your tenancy

If your landlord want you to leave he must give you a notice depending on how long you are living at the property (see table on next page).

If you are not keeping your obligations, your landlord only needs to give you 28 days’ notice, regardless of the length of your tenancy.

If your behaviour is seriously anti-social or threatens the fabric of the property, the landlord only needs to give you 7 days’ notice.

During the first 6 months of a tenancy, the landlord can ask you to leave without giving a reason (unless you have a fixed-term tenancy) but must serve a valid written notice of termination, allowing a minimum 28-day notice period.

Notice period depends on duration of the tennacy

The notice can be posted to you, be given to you in person or be left for you at your address. Emails and text messages do not qualify as valid notices of termination.

Section 62 of the 2004 Act requires the notice to be: in writing, signed by the landlord (or agent), have date of termination of the tenancy, specify the date of the notice itself, state the reason for termination.

Part 2

Obligations as a private tenant

This section explains your obligations as a private tenant

Photo by Crew on Unsplash

You must pay your rent

You must pay your rent in full.

You must pay your rent on time.

You must pay your rent even when a dispute case has been lodged to the RTB.

The only case when you don't need to pay and you can keep the rent (or part of it) is when you have made requests to the landlord regarding repairs that are landlords obligations, but the landlord did not act.

You can then keep the amount spent on repairs (if the landlord did not reimburse you).

Pay any other charges that are specified in the letting agreement (bills).

Keep the property in good order

You must ensure property where you live is kept in a good order.

You must inform your landlord about any maintenance issues or needed repairs.

You must allow access to the property to your landlord/agent or a maintenance company in order to carry out necessary work.

Avoid causing damage or loud noise

You must ensure to not do any damage to the property you are living in.

You must ensure you don't disturb your neighbors by causing loud noise.

Make sure that you do not cause the landlord to be in breach of the law.

Comply with any special terms in your tenancy agreement, oral or written

Always read carefully your contract.

If you don't understand or you are unsure of something that's in the contract ask for clarification or ask for second opinion.

Always try to have everything in writing and avoid oral agreements.

Give the landlord the information they need to register with the RTB and sign the registration form.

Give the landlord proper notice when you are ending the tenancy

Ensure you terminate your tenancy in writing.

Keep a copy of the written notice of termination.

You can use one of the sample notices from RTB.

Sample notices of termination

Part 3

The Equal Status Acts and anti-discrimination regulations

This section explains the nine grounds of discrimination

Photo by Anna Dziubinska on Unsplash

The Equal Status Acts 2000-2015

The Equal Status Acts 2000-2015 prohibits discrimination, directly or indirectly, on:

Gender
Civil Status
Family status (for example being pregnant, parent of child under 18, parent or carer of person over 18 that has a disability)
Sexual orientation
Religion
Age
Race
Membership of the Traveller community
Disability

What are the grounds for discrimination?

The Gender ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment whether you are a man, a woman or a transgender person.

The Civil Status ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment whether you are single, married, separated, divorced, widowed, in a civil partnership or previously in a civil partnership.

The Family Status ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment whether you are pregnant, a parent of a child under 18 years, or the resident primary carer or parent of a person with a disability, or a person without family status.

The Sexual Orientation ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment whether you are gay, lesbian, bisexual or heterosexual.

The Religion ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment no matter what your religious beliefs are or even if you don’t hold any religious beliefs.

The Age ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment if you are any age over 18. (The age ground only applies to young people under 18 if they hold a driver’s licence and are buying car insurance.)

The Race ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment no matter what your race, skin colour, nationality or ethnic origin is.

The Disability ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment if you have a disability, for example, physical, intellectual, learning, cognitive or emotional. Disability could also mean that you suffer from a particular medical condition. Accommodation providers are under an obligation to provide reasonable accommodation to persons with disabilities.

The Traveller Community ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment if you are a member of the Traveller community and share the traditions and culture of Travellers in Ireland.

The Housing Assistance ground:

You are entitled to equal treatment if you are in receipt of rent supplement, housing assistance payments, or any other social welfare payments.

Discrimination on any of the nine grounds, can also happens if the landlord/agent is:

refusing to let you look at the property
refusing to rent the property to you
refusing to accept rent supplement or housing assistance payments
refusing to complete the necessary forms to enable you to receive rent supplement or housing assistance payments
including discriminatory terms or conditions in leases or other tenancy agreements, whether written down or spoken
refusing to renew your lease or other tenancy agreement
end your lease or other tenancy agreement
withdrawing services related to property, or making it very hard for you to get these services.