Tenant "Please inform me if the lease can be extended as I have a place to move"
Landlord "Extension is difficult" informs and signs contract with new tenant
Tenant suddenly "I will not move... exercising the right to request lease renewal"
A ruling has been made that the tenant's right to reside takes precedence if the tenant initially agreed not to renew the lease contract but later changed their mind and exercised the right to request contract renewal.
Tenant A informed the landlord on July 30 of last year, three months before the lease contract expired, saying, "Please let me know whether you will extend or terminate the contract," and added, "I have a place to move to, so if you do not intend to extend, I will move out, so please respond promptly." This was one day before the implementation of the three major lease laws.
Landlord B replied, "Extension is difficult, so please discuss your moving arrangements," to which tenant A responded, "Understood."
Subsequently, landlord B signed a lease contract with a new tenant, C, and informed tenant A of this on August 3, 2020.
After a week, tenant A suddenly changed their position, stating, "I will not move," and exercised the right to request contract renewal.
Because tenant A did not vacate the property, landlord B had to cancel the contract with tenant C. Landlord B refunded the full deposit and separately paid a penalty of 10 million KRW. Landlord B then filed an eviction lawsuit, but the court ruled in favor of the tenant.
Judge Kang Jin-woo of Civil Division 9 at Uijeongbu District Court stated, "The tenant's right to request contract renewal as stipulated in Article 6-3 of the Housing Lease Protection Act is a provision specially designed to protect tenants for the stability of citizens' housing life," and added, "In light of the purpose of this provision, the waiver of the right to request contract renewal can only be recognized when the tenant explicitly and finally expresses the intention not to exercise this right."
He continued, "Considering that the plaintiff's claim of agreement to terminate the lease contract essentially means a waiver of the right to request contract renewal, it is difficult to see from the materials submitted by the plaintiff and the reasons claimed by the plaintiff that the defendant explicitly expressed the intention to waive the right to request contract renewal as stipulated by the Housing Lease Protection Act," thus ruling against the landlord.
Attorney Jeong Min-kyung of Law Firm Myeongdo explained, "This ruling appears consistent with the explanation of the Housing Lease Protection Act released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which states that even if there is a prior agreement to move out, it can be revoked and the right to request contract renewal can be exercised." However, she added, "It is questionable whether an agreement of intent in a legal act can be invalidated."
Meanwhile, the Housing Lease Protection Act (HLP Act), which introduces the right to request contract renewal, the rent ceiling system, and the rent reporting system, was officially promulgated on July 31 last year. Through the right to request contract renewal, tenants can demand an additional two-year extension of the contract, and landlords must accept this unless there are circumstances such as actual residence. At this time, rent increases cannot exceed 5% of the previous contract amount.
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