Since the property is of the landlord, the tenant is constantly under the fear of being evicted. If he is new to Noida, he may take several days or weeks to find another suitable rental property. In such a case, a rental agreement can protect him from a forceful eviction.
Below are some of the legal rights of the tenants:
- The tenant is eligible to receve the security deposit on the completion of the lock-in period, given that he does not cause any intentional damage to the property or any part of it.
- The tenant is not liable for the maintenance and repair that is needed by the rental property. He can discuss with the owner, get the issue fixed and reimbursed. He need not bear the cost of the maintenance.
- When the owner and the tenant registers a rental agreement, the rent has to be the same until the completion of the lock-in period. The owner cannot abruptly increase the rent without any prior notice and consent of the tenant.
- An owner cannot ask for a security deposit that exceeds the total amount of three months of rent.
- Once the property is rented, an owner cannot enter the premise without the prior permission of the tenant. The tenant is eligible to have complete privacy, despite being at the rental property.
- The owner cannot terminate the contract. If he wants to do so, he has to give proper reasoning to the tenant, pay the security deposit in full, and give notice to the tenant to vacate the flat. This applies only in cases wherein the behaviour of the tenant is within the permissible limits of the rental agreement.
- An owner cannot terminate the rental agreement on discriminatory grounds of caste, colour, creed, gender, class, etc.
Other than the benefits of the rights that a rental agreement gives to the tenants and the owners, it is the moral duty of the citizens of India to register a rental agreement. Usually, the rental agreements that are created for the period of 11 months or lesser do not need to be registered. However, the agreement is to be made on the stamp paper that is at least 2% of the value of the total monthly rent
If you, as a tenant, are unsure about your stay period, it is always a good idea to stick to a lock-in period of less than a year to avoid paying stamp duty and other registration expenses. On failure to register the rental agreement, the owner and the tenant can face the heat of jurisdiction of India. Hence, it is recommended to register your rental agreement in an acceptable format and with clauses that benefit both the parties.