The law establishes a list of cases when the tenant has the right to demand termination of the property lease agreement on his own initiative.
GROUNDS FOR UNILATERAL TERMINATION OF THE CONTRACT BY THE LESSOR
In accordance with paragraph 3 of Article 556 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Special Part), the lease agreement may be terminated early at the request of the tenant in the following cases:
- the landlord does not provide the property for use to the tenant or creates obstacles to the use of the property in accordance with the terms of the contract or the purpose of the property;
- the lessor does not carry out within the terms established by the contract, and in the absence of them in the contract - within a reasonable time, the obligation imposed on him to overhaul the property;
- the property transferred to the tenant has shortcomings that prevent its use, which were not specified by the landlord at the conclusion of the contract, were not known to the tenant in advance and could not be discovered by him during the inspection of the property or checking its serviceability at the conclusion of the contract;
- if the property, due to circumstances for which the lessee is not responsible, turns out to be in a state unsuitable for use.
Let's consider these conditions in more detail.
BARRIERS TO THE USE OF THE PROPERTY BY THE TENANT
Article 547 of the Civil Code obliges the lessor to transfer property to the lessee in a condition that complies with the terms of the contract and the purpose of the property with all its accessories and documents. The property must be transferred within the period specified in the contract, and if this period is not specified, within a reasonable (that is, sufficiently necessary for this) period. If this obligation is not fulfilled, the tenant has the right, at his choice, to claim this property from the lessor in court or demand termination of the contract.
An obstacle to the use of property may be expressed in the difficulty or termination of access to it (installation of locks, non-admission by security), lack of conditions (power outage and other utilities), failure to provide accessories and documents without which the property cannot be used (failure to provide a copy of the technical passport, when required to obtain a license).
FAILURE BY THE LANDLORD TO REPAIR THE PROPERTY
When accepting property for rent, the tenant expects that it is in a condition that allows it to be used for certain purposes. Major repairs are aimed at preserving the main properties of the property.
In accordance with Article 552 of the Civil Code, the obligation to overhaul the leased property is assigned to the lessor, and in the contract the parties may transfer this obligation to the lessee. If the lessor does not make major repairs to the leased property (except in cases where this obligation is assumed by the lessee), this violates the rights of the lessee.
In these cases, along with the right to independently carry out repairs or reduce the rent, the tenant has the right to withdraw from the contract.
DISADVANTAGES OF RENTED PROPERTY
The tenant has the right to demand termination of the lease agreement in case of detection of defects that objectively impede the use of the property.
The tenant has the right to refer to shortcomings only if:
- these shortcomings were not specified by the lessor at the conclusion of the contract;
- the deficiencies were not known to the tenant in advance;
- defects could not be discovered by him during the inspection of the property or checking its serviceability at the conclusion of the contract.
An example of such a situation would be hidden building flaws (structural defects) that make it unsafe to use for rental purposes.
UNSUITABILITY OF PROPERTY FOR FURTHER USE
The tenant has the right to demand termination of the contract if the property, due to circumstances for which he is not responsible, turns out to be in a state unsuitable for use. Such circumstances may include cases of destruction or damage to property as a result of an accident, fire, natural disaster that occurred due to the fault of third parties or due to force majeure. If the condition of the property has changed due to the fault of the tenant, he is not entitled to use this basis for terminating the contract.