09/06/2022
What you need to know about the recently passed land lord and tenant law.
The Land Lord and Tenant Act 2022 objectives are to regulate the relationship between the landlords and tenants, provide a law on letting/ renting of premises, provide for the responsibilities of landlords and tenants in respect to the letting/ renting of premises and related matters.
Here are few of the summarized key issues in the law that you need to know;
If you agree to a sum more than 500,000/= the tenancy agreement must be in writing or a data message for it to be enforceable however the a tenancy agreement can be oral, a data message or implied by conduct.
Before having a tenancy agreement, the land lord should obtain valid identification from the tenant.
As a tenant you can only pay in Uganda shillings unless you have a different agreed arrangement with the landlord.
The acts limits payment of rent in advance to not more than 3 months.
It shall be mandatory for the landlord and tenant to have tenancy agreements.
Landlords can only increase rent by only 10% per year.
Landlord is to pay all the taxes.
Landlords are supposed to notify tenants 90 days before, if they plan to increase rent.
Under fixed-term tenancies, rent stays the same until the term is finished unless there’s a contrary agreement.
The Landlord can charge a security deposit that doesn’t exceed one month’s rent.
Distress for rent is abolished, and the Landlord is encouraged to apply to the court to recover unpaid rent and reasonable costs.
The landlord is restricted from entering the tenants premises and he/she is required to give a 20 hours notice to the tenant before visiting the premises.
Tenants can sub-let the property to other tenants but with the knowledge of the Landlord.
Tenants should be given six months’ notice of termination of the tenancy by a landlord who wants to do something else with the rented property.
Share with us your thoughts on the new law.
By Micheal Kevin
