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Hi all,
I am just wanting to know that laws and if it is possible/legal to extend our lease.
Our apartment has been sold but settlement is not til December.
I am wanting to extend our lease with our current landlord for another 12 months as it is due mid-December.Is is possible? Or will the current landlord have to seek permission from the new owners?
I am just wanting to really secure my apartment. I did mention it to the new owners but they did not give a definite answer…
At the moment I deal with a landlord, not an agent, he is very good but not always on the ball with the legalities etc…
Thank you in advance.
Regards,
James
Melbourne, Victoria
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Replies
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You need to speak to the new owners as the current owner has ZERO power to approve anything after settlement (and anything he did agree to would be nullified once settlement occurs).
The only people who can extend your lease after settlemenmt are the new owners.
The chances are that the new owners have negotaiated a deal based on “vacant possession” – even if they intended to rent the place out. Everything is so much clearer then.
Your best bet is to get in touch with them and tell them that you would like to continue the tenancy when they take over ownership but would prefer to know now if that isn’t in their plan.
This would be a brand new lease and would have nothing to do with the current owner.
The only way the current owner would be able to negotiate your lease into the future, after they have sold the property, would be if it was part of the sales contract (and it won’t be, trust me).
If you had been in the middle of your lease when the sale went through and the landlord hadn’t told you he was planning to sell when he signed your lease, you would only have to give 14 days notice if you found another place now.
But it sounds like your lease will end when the new owners take possession. Even so, don’t wait too long before you start looking for somewhere else to live.
You can find out more about your rights by logging on to http://www.tenants.org.au.
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