Rent laws

The reform of the old rent laws still eludes us, partly because governments drag their feet and partly because it is difficult to legislate a formula that fits all circumstances without being very complicated and difficult to administer. I suggest the...

The reform of the old rent laws still eludes us, partly because governments drag their feet and partly because it is difficult to legislate a formula that fits all circumstances without being very complicated and difficult to administer. I suggest the following:

Allow the tenant to fix a new annual rent (not less than the present rent).

The landlord then has a choice: He may accept the new rent for the next 10 years, after which he may terminate the lease or be free to negotiate a new lease.

Alternatively, the landlord may choose to accept the new rent for only five years and then pay the tenant six times that rent, as a lump sum, upon which the lease will be terminated.

Refinements will have to be included, for example, to deal with any substantial permanent improvements made by the tenant.

This proposal does however have the merit of simplicity, while the tenant, having been lord of the past, will have a hand in determining his future.

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