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Dealing with rent increase in the middle of a contract.

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  1. #1

    Dealing with rent increase in the middle of a contract.

    Hi everyone,
    I have a contract with my landlord from Jan 2022- Jan 24 . Today I got a letter from him, stating that he will increase the rent (by 20%) starting Feb. 2023. Does a landlord have the right to increase the rent in the middle of a contract period? I have checked my contract, and it only states that the rent is XX $ for a period of 24 months starting January 2022. It does not mention whether the landlord can increase or decrease it.

    There is one slight problem - When the contract was signed, the landlord was out of country in England. As such, he authorized his nephew over the phone to sign it. So the contract has only his nephews signature and not his own.

    I talked to the landlord regarding this and he replied that I have no contract with him since he has not signed the contract agreement and I have been living in his house without a contract!
    Is there a legal recourse that I can take? I am not sure about the rights of the tenant in HK, so I am in a kind of a fix here. It seems to me it is just his word against mine. Any advice will be appreciated!


  2. #2

    Join Date
    May 2021
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    He is clearly taking you for a ride, doing exactly opposite of what market reality is and trying to scam you..

    1) Was agent involved in making a deal?
    2) Assuming agreement is under landlord's name and nephew signed it, do you have a copy of authorization letter
    3) Do you transfer money into Landlord's bank account?

    Regarding increasing rent after 1yr, its a grey area where tenancy agreement is not very clear unless you specifically write fix 2 year contract with fix cost, regular contract is 1+1 with second year flexible to both parties hence either party can terminate after a year. Landlord is trying to indirectly scare you to evict the flat unless you pay more, you know how to counter play such empty threats..


  3. #3

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    Who did you pay the deposit and rent to? Nephew or landlords acct?


  4. #4

    1) Was agent involved in making a deal?
    No
    2) Assuming agreement is under landlord's name and nephew signed it, do you have a copy of authorization letter
    No
    3) Do you transfer money into Landlord's bank account?
    Yes

    Gollygordon likes this.

  5. #5

    The deposit and rent all go to the landlord's account.


  6. #6

    This is a copy of the agreement that deals with the rental amount and lenght:

    Last edited by pennY_stock; 02-12-2022 at 11:40 AM.

  7. #7

    Join Date
    Jun 2011
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    If your deal is not unique and amazing and even at a 20% increase a steal, I would stop paying rent straight away and move out as soon as you stayed as long as your deposit amount is used up. Clearly since he is telling you, you don't have a contract with him, he will also not pay back your deposit. Don't do this type of stupid deals in the future..


  8. #8

    Join Date
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    The better question to ask, is whether the rental agreement was stamped at IRD?


  9. #9

    Join Date
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    As ndt mentioned, the key is probably whether there is a right to terminate the “fixed” contract after a year.

    The rental renegotiation process usually takes place in that shadow.

    I believe courts would find a way to recognise the actual reality of your situation vs the current claims of your landlord.

    What you really should ask yourself is whether you can live with a hostile landlord, and what else he might do if he doesn’t get his way. Somebody claiming that they didn’t make a contract instead of pointing out an option to terminate doesn’t seem like a person you should be in a relationship with.

    ndt, Javatar and Elegiaque like this.

  10. #10

    Join Date
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    is the tenancy stamped ?

    Shiojiri Hiro likes this.

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