| A: When a tenanted property is purchased, the new owner inherits the tenancy agreement. If yours is a month-to-month tenancy agreement then the rent can only be raised in accordance with the regulations and only once per year. A rent increase also requires government forms and a 3 month written notice.
If yours is a fixed term tenancy agreement then the rent cannot be increased at all during the period of the lease.
Unfortunately, I see this type of thing all the time: purchasers haven't brought in a tenancy expert to look at the tenancy agreement yet they count on being able to raise the rent or move in. Oftentimes purchasers learn the hard expensive way that they can't do either.
I advise everyone considering buying a rental property to do all the homework, which includes having a tenancy expert examine the agreements, just like you'd have a home building inspector come in and make a report. You'll save a ton of time, trouble, turmoil and anxiety - not to mention financial risk. |
