Morning! Me and my landlord are in a legal dispute over the contract renewal. He doesn’t want to renew it and I want to stay. He doesn’t have a good reason and is trying to bully me neglecting my basic rights as a tenant. He sent me a letter through a lawyer and I have replied with a lawyer. And this is the point: usually by the first week of August every 2 years I pay for the contract renewal fee: 1 month and fire insurance and guarantor. Now, should I pay them without having signed and received any contract or not! Because 2 lawyers are telling me the opposite. One says I should behave like nothing changes, the other one says that I should not be paying since I haven’t received any contract! What about the fire insurance and the guarantor? I think I should be paying those… I have already texted my lawyer about but you know … sometimes they take too much time to reply me and I am scared that if I don’t pay by the usual deadline the other party will have a reason to start a case against me. Till now the landlord didn’t do anything yet. I think he is wondering if he really wants to go to court. He has nothing on me. Rent paid for years in time and no complaints in the building at all! But I still wonder about those fees…
by chiarasan76
12 comments
Sorry no real advice but interested in this topic. Why should he be forced to allow you to renew your contract? If you’re at the end of the contract period, aren’t you done?
We cannot advise you unless we know what type of contract you have.
If the contract is a fixed term lease, you have NO right to renew the contract.
If the contract is a regular lease, you never need to sign a contract as the contract renews automatically. You just need to stay in contact.
If the renewal is disputed, to show your seriousness you can open a bank account at a Trust bank and deposit the renewal fee or any thing else you need to pay. Then tell them that you set aside the renewal fee and can pay it any time they drop their attempt to cancel the lease.
Basically, behaving like nothing changes is the way to handle things with a normal lease. Paying the renewal fee is not really that important, but if they refuse it you have a way to show you have the money set aside.
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Most contracts in Japan are ‘auto’ renewal type. The tenant does not have to agree to any changes. If you refuse to accept any changes, it will fallback to auto renewal at the current terms.
For many of the older contracts, even though it’s auto renew, you have to sign again to pay the renewal fee.
If you do not sign because landlord changes the terms and conditions, your current contract will lapse, and it will be ‘auto renew’ under the same terms by law. You will not be evicted.
This means the landlord will lose his right to get the renewal fee forever. (Because his contract has lapsed)
To alleviate this glitch, most newer contracts with big companies include the renewal fee as part of the contract and you don’t need to sign again
Your landlord is probably a private landlord that just copy pasted a contract template from 10 years back.
Your landlord is screwed and he knows it. He’s just using the lawyer to give you the impression that you are screwed.
Just be polite and keep engaging.
On the other hand, if your contract is the fixed type, you have to move if you don’t resign.
Guys you are missing the point: I can stay and I have a basic regular contract and I have lawyers involved. The point is: “the contract is automatically renewd under the same terms of the previous contract” means that should I stick to that even when it says that every 2 years I should pay the contract renewal fee plus Fire insurance and guarantor fee? THIS is the point… my lawyers have different opinions and I have said to them “I can pay the guarantor and the fire insurance because it’s under my name but why should I pay the extra rent fee if I HAVEN’t received and signed ANY renewal contract and I’m still in a legal dispute with the landlord?”
No owner is forced to renew contract, it’s their property and they do what they want with it.
You are protected “during” contract. But after it, you are not.
UNLESS you find that the contract says “renewal is desition of the renter” which ofcourse you won’t ever find that.
Contracts are to protect owner not you.
Why would you WANT to stay? Just move and plan on moving. Your landlord probably hates you and its never going to be pleasant. Eventually one way or another, they’ll get you out. Lawyering up and fighting is probably just delaying the inevitable.
Don’t pay for the renewal. Settle the case if you have one at all. Find a new residence. Move. That’s the normal solution
I wouldn’t want to put myself and my property at risk like that more than temporarily for a couple months. Even if you, “have the right” to stay, there a million ways the landlord can make your life hell if they don’t want you as a tenant any longer. And I wouldn’t want to give my money to someone who I’m not getting along with. Of course, maybe it’s the most awesome place, etc., etc. We don’t know the full story but best of luck.
The other alternative is try to negotiate him paying you your expenses to move since he is going to be making so much more renting out to Chinese tourists on Wechat most likely.
Also is he negotiating this via his Fudosan or with you directly? If it’s the Fudosan I question why they haven’t informed him that he isn’t allowed to not cancel the renewal?
As others have shared, It depends largely upon the type of tenancy agreement you have with your landlord.
It might be helpful to read up a little about “法定更新” (statutory/legal renewal?).
If your contract is one that allows renewal, *and* you are both unable to agree to the renewal terms by the end of the current contact, “法定更新” occurs and the contract is automatically renewed with the original terms, but without a specified period.
[https://ielove-cloud.jp/blog/entry-03385/](https://ielove-cloud.jp/blog/entry-03385/)
There is some useful information in this recent thread too:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/comments/1d03bql/my_landlord_is_jacking_up_my_rent/](https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/comments/1d03bql/my_landlord_is_jacking_up_my_rent/)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/comments/1e8jdmn/update_landlord_wants_to_increase_rent_and_asking/](https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/comments/1e8jdmn/update_landlord_wants_to_increase_rent_and_asking/)
I would recommend consulting with a lawyer however, as you are already doing, and not just rely on some random reddit/blog post.
The issue of the renewal fee is a small matter; but my understanding is, once “法定更新” occurs, you will never need to pay the renewal fee again, since the contract is renewed with no end date; there are those who are of the view that it needs to be paid once – IMO it depends largely on the exact wording that is written on your contract. Some landlords work around it by using text that indicates “it’s a fee payable every 2 years, regardless of type of renewal”, so even if statutory renewal occurs, they have the “right” to collect it. Others just indicate it is a renewal fee, so if there is no renewal, then it is not payable.
For insurance, it’s usually a condition of the contract – so not renewing this *can* possibly be a cause where the landlord may be able to terminate your lease; *or* you may be liable for any damages (that would otherwise have been covered by insurance). Ask your lawyer about it.
As for the guarantor fees; this is yet another gray area of sorts. A guarantor cannot just stop being one, just because they choose not to. They’re on the hook for it – so you should pay them for the services. If you do not, they should be able to separately pursue you for it, if they choose to. They can only stop being one, if the landlord (and you) agree to it. Your non-payment of their fee does not allow them to unilaterally withdraw from being your guarantor.
If there is no valid reason, your landlord cannot evict you (or not renew) easily. If they really want you out, they will need to compensate you. There are other threads that cover the kind of compensation you can expect for the inconvenience. They can’t even change the rent amount without your agreement; and this too can be negotiated.
Edited to also add: One other point – verbal agreements can be binding. So, do be careful what you actually agree to when speaking to your landlord/property manager.
So they don’t want to renew the contract, effectively asking you to leave? From what I’ve read (tbf 8 years ago), they can do that but only if they’ve given you notice. The notice period of intention to not renew the contract would be stated in the contract. Otherwise compensation is due or they need to allow you to stay for the notice duration.
Somebody explain to me what I’m missing. A contract that has to be renewed leaves the option to both parties not to renew the contract. Otherwise it locks both parties into a lifelong contract. And unless that specifically stated, that you’re going to rent that house until you die, which is something I’ve never heard of, then the implication is that it has to be renewed by both parties and that either party can cancel that contract. I don’t see how you can force the owner to rent to you when the contract period expires. He may want to rent it to his best friend, he may want to rent it tohis concubine, he may want to turn it into a whorehouse, it doesn’t matter why he doesn’t want to renew the contract, he can. And as far as I’m concerned, you should just move out.