Thousands of tenants have already asked themselves the question if the owner can visit the accommodation without warning. If your landlord enters your accommodation without reason, he is not within his rights and you can report him. On the other hand, he may have the right to access the accommodation in the event of work or if he wishes to show the accommodation following the termination of the rental contract.If you live in Florida and would want to know more about the florida landlord tenant law, click the link to check out the guide.
The owner does not have the right to enter without authorization
Once you have signed your lease, your accommodation constitutes your private space. As such, THE owner may not enter under any circumstances without your authorization. If he does, you can consider it a trespass. L’article 226-4 of the Penal Code (amended by law no. 2023-668 of July 27, 2023, editor’s note) provides for home invasion without naming it as “entry into the home of another using maneuvers, threats, assault or coercion, except in cases where the law allows it“. In this case, the lessor faces a penalty of 3 years of imprisonment and a fine of 45,000 euros. If you wish to initiate proceedings against the latter, the limitation period is 6 years.
The law does not provide for a forced and imposed visit by the owner during the lease to check the condition of the accommodation and verify that “everything is fine“. If he wishes to come and carry out checks or speak with you, the owner must therefore notify you in advance. You must make an appointment and therefore be notified of his arrival.
Authorized cases
The law provides for exceptions to the prohibition on the owner entering the accommodation he is renting:
- The owner can access the accommodation if work is carried out. The tenant then has the obligation to allow access, if it concerns maintenance and upkeep work on the accommodation, improvement work on common or private areas, or performance improvement work. housing energy.
- In the event of termination of the lease, if the owner wishes to show the accommodation, he must also be able to access it. On the other hand, the owner must carry out visits on decent days and times.
The owner can keep a duplicate of the keys
The law does not provide anything on this subject. Therefore, your landlord can keep a duplicate of the keys. The owners give legitimate reasons for this, such as being able to enter the accommodation in the event of a fire or water leak, for example. Likewise, if you lose keys, you will probably find it useful to be able to borrow the owner’s keys. However, even in an emergency, a landlord cannot enter the property without the tenant’s permission.