Can I object to my landlord changing my 12-month lease to a month-to-month lease?

The long answer

The Land Court’s rulings are in terms of the Extension of Security of Tenure Act (ESTA) and apply to residents on rural land, and thus the ruling on compulsory mediation before seeking an eviction order would not apply to you.

However, nobody in South Africa can be evicted without an eviction order, whether they are occupying the property legally or not. This is under the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Prevention of Illegal Occupation of Land Act (PIE) of 1998. 

You have to be notified in writing of the date that the court will hear the eviction application and you have the right to give your side of the story in court. 

The court has to ask whether it would be fair and just to evict you and whether you will be left homeless if you are evicted. The municipality must also attend the court hearing and tell the court whether they can provide emergency accommodation for you if the eviction is granted. 

If the eviction is granted, you must be given the date when it will take place, and that date must ensure that you are given a reasonable amount of time to move. You can only be evicted by the sheriff of the court if you have not left by the date given.

You say that after a rent increase of over 10% which you considered unfair, you had taken your landlords to the Rental Housing Tribunal (RHT), which had ruled that considering other payments, the increase was only 8.2%, rather than 11.2%. You then agreed to this increase, but when you signed the lease, you saw that it was now on a month-to-month basis, rather than a yearly basis. 

Your original lease agreement, or verbal agreement, determines the terms and conditions of your tenancy, including the duration and renewal process. Neither you nor your landlord can make changes to your original agreement without checking with the other party first.

Thus, it seems to me that it is not legal for your landlords to unilaterally change the terms of your lease renewal from annual to month-to-month – especially as a potential act of retaliation, after you took them to the RHT. They cannot impose a new, different term (like a forced switch to month-to-month instead of an annual renewal) without negotiation and your acceptance.

You could inform your landlord in writing that you do not agree to the change in the renewal term and that you expect the lease to be renewed annually, as it was before.

If the landlord does not agree to this, you could consider lodging a new complaint with the RHT regarding this new issue. You would have to give the RHT copies of your original lease and any correspondence or communication where the landlord proposes the month-to-month renewal.

If you need legal advice, you could approach Legal Aid, which is a means-tested organisation that must assist people who can’t afford a lawyer. These are their contact details:

Legal Aid

• Email: communications2@legal-aid.co.za

• Tel: 0800 110 110 (Monday to Friday 7am to 7pm) 

• Please Call Me: 079 835 7179 

Wishing you the best,
Athalie