Rental Housing Act, 1999 (Act No. 50 of 1999)

Chapter 3 : Rights and Obligations of Tenants and Landowners

4A. Rights and obligations of tenants

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(1)A tenant has the right to receive a written receipt from the landowner for all payments received by the landowner from the tenant, which receipt must—
(a)be dated;
(b)clearly indicate the address, including the street number and further description, if necessary, of a dwelling in respect of which payment is made;
(c)indicate whether payment has been made for rental, arrears, deposit or otherwise; and
(d)specify the period for which payment is made.

 

(2)A tenant may request the landowner during the period of the lease to provide him or her with written proof in respect of interest accrued on the deposit paid.

 

(3)Subject to section 4B(3), on the expiration of a lease, a tenant has the right to receive payment of the deposit plus any interest accrued to such deposit without any deduction or set-off, within seven days of expiration of the lease.

 

(4)The tenant must, on request by the landowner, make himself or herself available to conduct a joint inspection of the dwelling at a time convenient for the landowner and tenant, with a view to ascertaining if there is any damage caused to the dwelling during the tenant’s occupation, as contemplated in section 4B(5).

 

(5)A tenant has the right, during the lease period, to privacy, and should the landowner wish to exercise his or her right of inspection, the inspection must be done in a reasonable manner after reasonable notice to the tenant.

 

(6)The tenant’s rights as against the landowner include his or her right not to have—
(a)his or her person or dwelling searched;
(b)his or her possessions searched and seized, except in terms of a law of general application and having first obtained a ruling by a Tribunal or an order of court; or
(c)the privacy of his or her communications infringed.

 

(7)The rights set out in subsection (6) apply equally to members of the tenant’s household and to visitors of the tenant.

 

(8)A tenant is liable for rental and other costs agreed upon in the lease upon the due date, but for costs other than those agreed to in the lease, the tenant is only liable upon proof of factual expenditure by the landowner.

 

(9)A tenant may not sublet a dwelling without the consent of the landowner, which consent may not be unreasonably withheld.

 

[Section 4A inserted by section 7 and substituted by section 20 of Notice No. 876, GG 38184, dated 5 November 2014]