Tenant and Landlord

Tenancy Agreemeent
Covenants Landlord and Tenant

NOR AMIN MOHD RADZUAN

 Tenants and Landlords
• An association between two individuals arising from
an agreement by which one individual occupies the
other's real property with permission, subject to a
rental fee.
• The term landlord refers to a person who owns
property and allows another person to use it for a
fee. The person using the property is called a
tenant. The agreement between a landlord and a
tenant is called a lease or rental agreement.
• In a landlord and tenant relationship, the parties are
often referred to as lessor (landlord) and lessee
(tenant). Indeed, a lease is a contract that creates
the same relationship as exists between a landlord
and tenant: the lessor owns property and allows the
lessee to use it for a fee.
 Tenants and landlords
• A lease agreement may, for example, relate to the use of
a good or service. Because living arrangements are
important to human existence, landlord and tenant
relationships are treated differently from lease contracts.
• Generally, a landlord and tenant relationship exists:

i. The property owner agree to occupancy of the

premises;
ii. The tenant acknowledges that the owner has title to
the property and a future interest in the property;
iii. The tenant receives a limited right to use the
premises;
iv. The owner transfers possession and control of the
premises to the tenant;
v. A contract to rent exists between the parties.
 Tenants and landlords
 A rental contract may be implied under the law.

 That is, landlord and tenant law may apply even in the absence of a
written and signed rental agreement between the owner of the
property and the person living on the property.

 Whether a court will imply a relationship depends on the facts of the

case. The court will look at a number of factors, including the owner's
consent to occupancy of the property, the length of the occupancy,
and the exchange of monies, goods, or services.

 A court's finding that a landlord and tenant relationship exists

between two or more persons is significant because the law places
duties on both parties in such a relationship.

 Courts resolved disputes between landlords and tenants according to

strict contract and property principles, and tenants often were forced
to pick up and move without notice or an opportunity to present an
argument to a court.
 Tenants and landlords
• Generally, landlords must deliver the rented premises to
the tenant at the beginning of the tenancy, and must
disclose to the tenant any potential dangers and defects
in the premises.

• The length of the tenancy should be set out in the rental

agreement. If no term is written into the agreement,
courts will usually deem the tenancy to be month to
month. This means that either party must give the other
one month's written notice before terminating the
tenancy.

• One important issue in landlord and tenant law is the

implied warranty of habitability. If a landlord breaches the
warranty of habitability, the landlord may lose the right to
collect rent from the tenant, and the tenant may lose a
place to live.
 Tenants and landlords
• Landlords have additional duties and restrictions under
landlord and tenant statutes. Under the implied warranty
of quiet enjoyment, a landlord must give notice to the
tenant and receive permission from the tenant before
entering rented premises.

• This rule does not apply if there is a bona fide (jujur

ikhlas) emergency, such as a fire or some other danger
to the premises.

• A concept related to quiet enjoyment is the tenant's right

to reasonable use of the premises.

• Landlords may not substantially interfere with this right.

Whether actions by the landlord substantially interfere
with a tenant's reasonable use of the premises is
determined by the facts of the case.
 Tenants and landlords
• To illustrate, assume that a tenant rents an apartment
and works there repairing electronic equipment. The
landlord's refusal to allow the tenant to conduct such
activity may constitute substantial interference of a
reasonable use. If, however, the tenant uses the
premises to mix explosive materials, the landlord may
have the right to interfere because such a use is
unreasonable.
• If a landlord is found to have interfered with a tenant's
quiet enjoyment or reasonable use of the premises, the
tenant may recover damages.

• The measure of damages varies by jurisdiction. Usually,

the tenant will not have to pay rent for the period of
interference, and the tenant may seek damages for any
losses caused by the interference.
 Tenants and Landlords
• There are several reciprocal (timbal balik) duties between landlords
and tenants. A landlord must keep the premises in good repair, but
the tenant must not damage the premises.

• The tenant must leave the premises in their original condition,

accounting for reasonable wear and tear, or risk losing the security
deposit.

• A security deposit is money deposited by the tenant with the

landlord to guarantee the tenant's performance under the lease.

• If the tenant damages the premises, the landlord may keep the
security deposit and sue the tenant for damages not covered by the
deposit.

• A landlord must give a tenant notice to vacate the premises if the

landlord wishes to rent the premises to another tenant. The landlord
may not do this during a rental period. For example, if a tenant has
signed a lease for one year, the landlord may not force the tenant to
move until the end of the year.
Tenancy Agreement

 The tenancy agreement is the main

contractual document between the landlord
and the tenant that spells out the contractual
rights and obligations of both the parties.
 The tenancy agreement is governed by Part
15, Part 18 Chapter 7 and the Sixth Schedule
of the National Land Code (Act 56) of 1965.
 Tenancy management essentially involves
ensuring that the rights and obligations in the
tenancy agreement are enforced.
 What is Service Charge?
• Service charges are levied by landlords to recover the
costs they incur in providing services to a dwelling.
• The way in which the service charge is organised is set
out in the tenant's lease or tenancy agreement.
• The charge normally covers the cost of such matters as
general maintenance and repairs, insurance of the
building and, where the services are provided, central
heating, lifts, porterage (khidmat bawa barang), lighting
and cleaning of common areas etc.
• The charges may also include the costs of management
by the landlord or by a professional managing agent and
for contributions to a reserve fund.
B. Tenant covenants (perjanjian)

a. rental payment
mode of payment to be indicated clearly

b. payment of increased outgoings

any increase in the assessment rates, property taxes etc will be
borne by the tenant. The additional sum levied will be in
proportion to the space occupied by the tenant

c. payment of service charge

the total amount and mode of payment must be stated. It must
also be provided that in the event there are increase in the
service charge these must be apportioned in the preceding
year.
d. payment utilities
if the utilities meter in the name of the landlord then it is
important to include a provision that a deposit is to be paid to
the landlord.
The landlord can increase the deposit in the event the average
consumption of the tenant increases.
The deposit is held free of interest. Payment of electricity
charges in this manner must be monthly. If a unit measure is
used whereby the charges are on a per square foot basis, then
the charges can be collected monthly in advance along with
the rental. A better system would be to ensure the tenant enter
into a direct contract with TNB and other utility authorities.

e. inspection and repairs

the landlord can instruct the tenant to carry out repairs. Make
inspections to prevent the unauthorized extensions or illegal
activities.
f. internal cleaning
cleaning of the internal demised premises. The tenant is to
employ the same cleaner utilized to carry out the cleaning of the
common areas. This is to ensure that some form of security
prevails and the entry of numerous cleaners is prevented.
g. to permit laying of pipes, wires etc
this is to allow the landlord to lay such items if necessary
through the premises for the purposes of the building services.
h. structural or material alterations
any work carried out by the tenant which involves structural or
material alterations will require the written consent from the
landlord
i. Prohibition (melarang) of use as dwelling
this is to prevent the tenant from staying in the premises if the
premises is a commercial premises.
j. prohibition of use as a store
this is to prevent the tenant from storing goods or even the use
of the demised premises as a laboratory or workshop
k. upkeep and maintenance of the demised premises
all the landlord property must be keep in good decorative repair
and in the last year of the tenancy, the tenant is to repaint the
demised premises.
l. prohibition of use amounting to pollution
m. prohibition nuisance (pengacau)
n. compliance with Laws, etc
o. responsibility for security
to ensure there is adequate security for the tenant
premises as the landlord will not be liable. Tenant
cannot open window unless the air
conditioning plant breaks down.
p. prohibition of public announcements or
exhibition and displays also relates to display
and installation of name signs, air conditionings
units, flag staff, etc.
q. prohibition of bicycle, etc, parking.
r. prohibition of noxious, dangerous or hazardous
goods
s. prohibition of cooking, etc
also to include that the tenant shall not permit petty
food hawkers into premises.
t. not to assign or underlet, etc
strict prohibition. Some agreement allow for
applications to be made to the land lord.
u. no sales by auction (lelong)
v. to permit inspection prior to determination of
tenancy
this should be done three months prior to
determination.
w. on determination of tenancy
to make good dilapidations
x. excessive load
this must be stated in terms of kg per square metre
or pounds per square foot. The
consulting engineer for the property must be
consult in those matter.
y. use of lifts
passengers lift are for passengers only, goods lift should be for
the carting of goods only but if no goods lift have been provided,
permission must be obtained to transport goods in
passengers lifts provided the lift is adequately protected.
z. upkeep of toilets
the tenant is responsible if the tenant is in sole occupation of any
whole floor.

aa. Electrical installation tenant must uses a registered

engineer or electrical contractor for any additional electrical
works.

bb. Extra air conditioning services

landlord may provided extra air conditioning at a rate to be
determined by landlord but no mention of amount.

cc. not to cause any Act to make insurance void

tenant must not do anything to the demised premises to
invalidate landlord insurance.
Covenants By The Landlord With
The Tenant
Tenancy Agreement
 Covenants By The Landlord With
The Tenant
a. Quiet enjoyment without interruptions - For the tenant to have
quiet enjoyment without interruptions.
b. Payment of outgoing - To pay quit rent, assessment or other
rates made on the building.
c. Upkeep of building - roof, main structure, walls, floors, drains,
pipes, lifts, escalators, air conditioning, etc are the responsibilities
of the landlord. Repair and decoration of common areas or
equipment at the absolute discretion of the landlord. Landlord
shall only provided service for which service charges are paid.
d. Services rendered by landlord - air conditioning, lift services,
lighting of common areas, common area of cleaning building
including keeping windows and exterior of building clean, provide
adequate insurance cover excluding tenants fixtures and fittings,
provision of water supply but not for tenant demised premises, 24
hours security.
 Covenants By The Landlord With
The Tenant
e. Alteration by tenant - to permit tenant to undertake
modifications and alterations for the convenience of the
tenant.
f. Application for approvals - landlord shall assist tenant in
obtaining statutory approvals but responsibility of
obtaining such approvals are the tenants
g. Refund of deposit - landlord is to refund deposit to the tenant
without interest. The tenant is to return the deposit
receipts for refund to be made. The landlord should nor refund
the deposit until such time as the dilapidations are
undertaken and the tenant complies with all obligations. In the
event the tenant does not comply, the landlord has the right to
uses the deposit to make good the demised premises. No
fixed time is to be stated on refund of deposit.
h. Dismantling of partitions - the tenant is permitted to take
away partitions but the tenant must be responsible to make
good premises to original state of repair.
 Miscellaneous Provisions
Tenancy Agreement
 Covenants By The Landlord With
The Tenant
e. Alteration by tenant - to permit tenant to undertake
modifications and alterations for the convenience of the
tenant.
f. Application for approvals - landlord shall assist tenant in
obtaining statutory approvals but responsibility of
obtaining such approvals are the tenants
g. Refund of deposit - landlord is to refund deposit to the tenant
without interest. The tenant is to return the deposit
receipts for refund to be made. The landlord should nor refund
the deposit until such time as the dilapidations are
undertaken and the tenant complies with all obligations. In the
event the tenant does not comply, the landlord has the right to
uses the deposit to make good the demised premises. No
fixed time is to be stated on refund of deposit.
h. Dismantling of partitions - the tenant is permitted to take
away partitions but the tenant must be responsible to make
good premises to original state of repair.
 Miscellaneous Provisions
Tenancy Agreement
 Miscellaneous Provisions
a. Event of default
b. Damage to goods, etc. This is to protect the landlord and the
landlord shall no responsible for any damage to furniture or fittings
in the demised premises as a result performance of any services
c. Damages to demised premises
d. Renewal of tenancy
e. Landlord agents. The land lord has the right to appoint agents.
This facilities the appointment of managing agents and other of
contractors
f. Introduction and implementation of new By- Laws, rules and
regulations as a result of this, the landlord will not be responsible
for making good or for payments for alteration of tenants partitions
due to any change in the law or regulations
 Miscellaneous Provisions
g. Agreement on area of demises premises
h. Waiver - Any failure or delay on the part of either party in
executing the agreement shall not constitute a waiver.
i. Time - Time shall be the essence of the agreement
j. Stamp and solicitors costs - Usually this to be paid by tenant,
but in some cases the tenant is willing to pay the stamp duty but
not the solicitors cost and insist on both parties bearing their own
solicitors cost.
k. Notice - Service must be to the last known postal address of the
tenant.
 Thank You

different perception and understanding !!