If the rental was not perfectly regular, the expropriated owner will not be compensated for his loss of income, said the Court of Cassation in a judgment rendered on January 11.
Conversely, clarified the Court, it can only be deducted from the value of the property a small reduction, or even zero, if the tenant does not hold a lease in good and due form.
In a first judgment, the judges explain that an owner who rents out, for a main residence, an indecent accommodation, that is to say not provided with the minimum comfort, or an accommodation with an area of less than 9 square meters , cannot claim compensation for the loss of income that the expropriation of this property will cause him. The characteristics of decent housing are mentioned in a 2002 decree and all landlords are obliged, without the lease having to specify it, to provide decent housing if it is a main dwelling.
Success for the owner
In a second judgment, the Court explains that conversely, if the tenant is in fact a squatter, his presence should not cause a reduction in the value of the property, or else a reduction less than that of the tenancy in good standing. It agrees with an owner who complained that his expropriated apartment had been compensated with a 20% discount linked to the presence of an unauthorized occupant.
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The abatement cannot be the same depending on whether the property is occupied by virtue of a title or without right or title, she explains.
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