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Rent Control Act of 2009 Full Text (RA 9653)

*Update: The Rent control Act of 2009 has been extended until December 31, 2015, according to a press release from the Senate of The Philippines.

As a follow up to my previous post about Republic Act (RA) No. 9653, also known as the Rent Control Act of 2009, I am posting here a full text copy of the rent control law in its entirety as reference for everyone.

Salient provisions of RA 9653 can be found in my previous post which highlights the exemption of rent-to-own agreements from the new rent control law and you may access it here. I look forward to the release of the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of RA 9653 and once the rent control act IRR becomes available, I’ll surely post it  here as well.

Full text of RA 9653:

S. No. 1963
H. No. 6098

Republic of the Philippines
Congress of the Philippines
Metro Manila
Fourteenth Congress
Second Regular Session

Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-eight day of July, two thousand eight.

Republic Act No. 9653

AN ACT ESTABLISHING REFORMS IN THE REGULATION OF RENT OF CERTAIN RESIDENTIAL   UNITS, PROVIDING   THE   MECHANISMS   THEREFOR   AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

Be   it   enacted   by   the   Senate   and   House   of   Representatives   of   the   Philippines   in   Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known and cited as the “Rent Control Act of 2009.

SEC. 2.  Declaration of Policy. – The State shall, for the common good, undertake a continuing program of encouraging the development of affordable housing for the lower income brackets and other beneficiaries.

Toward this end, the State shall continue to protect housing tenants in the lower income brackets and other beneficiaries from unreasonable rent increases.

SEC.   3.  Definition   of   Terms. –   The   following   terms   as   used   in   this   Act   shall   be understood as:

(a) “Rent” shall mean the amount paid for the use or occupancy of a residential unit whether payment is made on a monthly or other basis.

(b) “Residential   unit” shall refer to an apartment, house and/or land on which another’s dwelling is located and used for residential purposes and shall include not only buildings, part or units thereof   used solely as dwelling places, boarding houses, dormitories, rooms and bedspaces offered for rent by their owners, except motels, motel rooms, hotels, hotel rooms, but also those used for home industries, retail stores or other business purposes if the owner thereof and his or her family actually live therein and use it principally for dwelling purposes.

(c) “Immediate members of family of the lessee or lessor” for purposes of repossessing the leased premises, shall be limited to his or her spouse, direct descendants or ascendants, by consanguinity or affinity.

(d) “Lessee” shall mean the person renting a residential unit.

(e) “Owner/Lessor” shall include the owner or administrator or agent of the owner of the residential unit.

(f) “Sublessor” shall mean the person who leases or rents out a residential unit leased to him by an owner.

(g) “Sublessee” shall mean the person who leases or rents out a residential unit from a sublessor.

SEC. 4. Limit on Increases in Rent. – For a period of one (1) year from its effectivity, no increase shall be imposed upon the rent of any residential unit covered by this Act:  Provided, that after such period until December 31, 2013, the rent of any residential unit covered by this Act shall not be increased by more than seven (7%) annually as long as the unit is occupied by the same lessee: Provided, further, That when the residential unit becomes vacant, the lessor may set the initial rent for the next lessee: Provided, however, That in the case of boarding houses, dormitories, rooms and bedspaces offered for rent to students, no increase in rental more than once per year shall be allowed.

SEC. 5. Coverage of this Act. – All residential units in the National Capital Region and other highly urbanized cities, the total monthly rent for each of which ranges from One peso (P1.00) to Ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00) and all residential units in all other areas, the total monthly   rent   for   each   of   which   ranges   from   One   peso   (P1.00)   to   Five   thousand   pesos (P5,000.00) as of the effectivity date of this Act shall be covered, without prejudice to existing contracts.

SEC. 6.  Authority to Continue Rental Regulation. –  Notwithstanding the lapse of the period provided in Section 4 of this Act, the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) is hereby granted the authority to continue the regulation of the rental of certain residential units, to determine the period of regulation and its subsequent extensions if warranted, to determine the residential units covered and to adjust the allowable limit on rental increases per annum, taking into consideration, among others, National Statistics Office (NSO) census   on   rental   units,   prevailing   rental   rates,   the   monthly   inflation   rate   on   rentals   of   the immediately preceding year, and rental price index.

SEC. 7. Rent and Requirement of Bank Deposit. – Rent shall be paid in advance within the first five (5) days of every current month or the beginning of the lease agreement unless the contract of lease provides for a later date of  payment. The lessor cannot demand more than one (1) month advance rent. Neither can he/she demand more than two (2) months deposit which shall be kept in a bank under the lessor’s account name during the entire duration of the lease agreement. Any and all interest that shall accrue therein shall be returned to the lessee at the expiration of the lease contract. In the event however, that the lessee fails to settle rent, electric, telephone, water or such other utility bills or destroys any house components and accessories, the deposits and interests therein shall be forfeited in favor of the latter in the amount commensurate to the pecuniary damage done by the former.

SEC. 8. Assignment of Lease or Subleasing. – Assignment of lease or subleasing of the whole or any portion of the residential unit, including the acceptance of boarders or bedspacers, without the written consent of the owner/lessor is prohibited.

SEC. 9. Grounds for Judicial Ejectment. – Ejectment shall be allowed on the following grounds:

(a) Assignment of lease or subleasing of residential units in whole or in part, including the acceptance of boarders or bedspacers, without the written consent of the owner/lessor;

(b) Arrears in payment of rent for a total of three (3) months: Provided, That in the case of refusal by the lessor to accept payment of the rent agreed upon, the lessee may either deposit, by way of consignation, the amount in court, or with the city or municipal treasurer, as the case may be, or barangay chairman, or in a bank in the name of and with notice to the lessor, within one (1)  month after the refusal of the lessor to accept payment. The lessee shall thereafter deposit the rent within ten (10) days of every current month. Failure   to   deposit   the   rent   for   three   (3)   months   shall   constitute   a   ground   for   ejectment. The lessor, upon authority of the court in case of consignation or upon joint affidavit by him and the lessee to be submitted to the city or municipal treasurer or barangay chairman and to the bank where deposit was made, shall be allowed to withdraw the deposits;

(c) Legitimate need of the owner/lessor to repossess his or her property for his or her own use or for the use of any immediate member of his or her family as a residential unit: Provided, however, That the lease for a definite period has expired: Provided, further, that the lessor has given the lessee the formal notice three (3) months in advance of the lessor’s intention to repossess the property and: Provided, finally, that the owner/lessor is prohibited from leasing the residential unit or allowing its use by a third party for a period of at least (1) year from the time of repossession;

(d) Need of the lessor to make necessary repairs of the leased premises which is the subject of an existing order of condemnation by appropriate authorities concerned in order to make the said premises safe and habitable:  Provided, That after said repair, the lessee ejected shall have the first preference to lease the same premises: Provided, however, That the new rent shall be reasonably commensurate with the expenses incurred for the repair of the said residential unit and: Provided, finally, That if the residential unit is condemned or completely demolished,
the lease of the new building will no longer be subject to the aforementioned first preference rule in this subsection; and

(e) Expiration of the period of the lease contract.

SEC. 10. Prohibition Against Ejectment by Reason of Sale or Mortgage. – No lessor or his successor-in-interest shall be entitled to eject the lessee upon the ground that the leased premises  have been sold or mortgaged  to a third person regardless of whether the lease or mortgage is registered or not.

SEC. 11. Rent-to-Own Scheme. – At the option of the lessor, he or she may engage the lessee in a written rent-to-own agreement that will result in the transfer of ownership of the particular dwelling in favor of the latter. Such an agreement shall be exempt from the coverage of Section 5 of this Act.

SEC. 12. Application of the Civil Code and Rules of Court of the Philippines. – Except when the lease is for a definite period, the provision of paragraph (1) of Article 1673 of the Civil Code of the Philippines, insofar as they refer to residential units covered by this Act, shall be suspended during the effectivity of this Act, but other provisions of the Civil Code and the Rules of Court on lease contracts, insofar as they are not in conflict with the provisions of this Act shall apply.

SEC. 13.  Penalties. – A fine of not less than Twenty-five thousand pesos (P25,000.00) nor more than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000.00) or imprisonment of not less than one (1) month and one (1) day to not more than six (6) months or both shall be imposed on any person, natural or juridical, found guilty of violating any provision of this Act.

SEC. 14. Information Drive. – The Department of the Interior and Local Government and the HUDCC, in coordination with other concerned agencies, are hereby mandated to conduct a continuing information drive about the provisions of this Act, which shall be translated and be made  available in major regional dialects and shall be posted in conspicuous public places, including barangay halls.

SEC. 15. Review of the Rental Regulation – The HUDCC is hereby mandated to conduct every three (3) years from the effectivity of this Act a review of its implementation and a study on   rental   regulation,   and   submit   to   Congress   its   recommendation   on   whether   a   continuing regulation is still necessary or deregulation is already warranted.

SEC. 16. Program to Cushion Impact in the Event of a Regulation-Free Rental Housing Market –  The   HUDCC   and   its   attached   agencies   are   hereby   mandated   to   formulate   and implement a two (2) year transition program which will provide for safety measures to cushion the impact in the event of a regulation-free housing market.

SEC.   17.  Separability   Clause.   –   If   any   provision   or   part   hereof   is   held   invalid   or unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall remain valid and subsisting.

SEC. 18. Repealing Clause. – Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified or amended accordingly.

SEC. 19. Effectivity Clause. – This Act shall take effect beginning fifteen (15) days after its complete publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,

PROSPERO C. NOGRALES                             JUAN PONCE ENRILE
Speaker of the House                                      President of the Senate
of Representatives

This Act which is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 3163 and House Bill No. 6098 was finally passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on May 27, 2009 and May 26, 2009, respectively.

MARILYN B. BARUA-YAP                                 EMMA LIRIO-REYES
Secretary General                                           Secretary of the Senate
House of Representatives

Approved:       JUL 14 2009

GLORIA MACAPAGAL ARROYO
President of the Republic of the Philippines

A  full text copy of RA 9653 in PDF format is also available. Click here to download a full text copy of the Rent Control Act of 2009. (Source: http://www.hudcc.gov.ph)

—–

To our financial freedom!

Jay Castillo
Real Estate Investor
Real Estate Broker License #: 20056
Blog: https://www.foreclosurephilippines.com
Social Network: http://foreclosurephilippines.ning.com
Mobile: +639178843882
E-mail: ph.investor@gmail.com

Text by Jay Castillo.Copyright © 2009 All rights reserved.

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243 thoughts on “Rent Control Act of 2009 Full Text (RA 9653)”

  1. Lets assume im not educated well. Am not so understand that republic act.. and am not fluent in english…but i have indicators from my friends sa mga advices nila for my concern. Pls correct me if am wrong.

    In the given situation to the people that are involved. Theres,

    Primary Owner
    Secondary Owner(mother of the primary owner)
    and Boarder

    My brother rented a bedspacer for 1,100 pesos per month. 1 month deposit 1 month advanced. In davao city and hes a student.

    Sa pagstart palang sa pag board niya ay alang contract. Automatic hingi sila bayad. With NOT OFFICIAL RECEIPT ang natatanggap niya kada bayad. On 2nd week of February 2015 the primary owner give a message to the tenance for the final announcement na before march 1 dapat nakaalis na ang ang mga boarder dahil irereconstruct na ang whole building. Actually, January pa daw nag announced ang primary owner for reconstruction then the tenance did not announced officialy in january. Meaning to say. Sa 2nd week na niya na announced officialy.

    1st wrong system nila ay hindi pala naformal ang pag announced. Then verbal lang ang pag announced. With no paper statement. So the tenance was irresponsible.

    All boarders are schocked to the announcement. May mga boarder na kulang ang bayad. Including my brother for 2 months na di nakabayad at nakonsume na niya ang 1month deposit. Total of 2months na di nakabayad sa halagang. At pinapirma sya ng acknowledgement letter na ang nakalagay ay magbabayad sya ng kulang for the coming april 2015. At siya lang ang nakapirma. So

    Actually magbabayad nama talaga sila lahat but aside from that they are very poor kaya di slla mmakabayad agad. Ang aking kapatid lang ang nag pirma dahil ang mga kasamahan niya na may kulang din ay nakaalis na ng maaga.

    To the next story. Maybabyad sana kami ng may 2015 and yes its actually late . BUT theres kwento kwento na di daw dapat ibigay sa tenance ang pambyad para sa kulang kasi ibubulsa lang ng tenance and di irereport sa owner. So naghintay kami na tatawagan kami ng owner kasi di namin alam kung ano ang numero ng mga owner at doon pa kami magbabayad.

    Today is july 17, 2015. Tumawag kaninang umaga ang secondary owner at pupunta sya sa mga probinsya ng mga boarder at ipapakulong niya ito na may halong malaking banta sa buhay(ipapakulong) ng mga boarder na iba ang tono at gali na galit. Including my brother.

    Yes theres timing kc namatay yung grandma ko at wala pa kaming arrangement sa pambyad. Kaya nagmakaawa ang mother ko for kataposan ng july na sya magbabayad. And the secondary owner reconsidered.

    In this case? Makukulong ba talaga ang brother ko? Kasi sa mga pagpapatunay ay first. Walang contratahan ang lessor at lesse so automatic bayad lang ng bayad with NO OFFICIAL RECEIPT. 2nd, verbal lang pag hatid ng mensahe ng tenance na irereconstruct ang boarding house.and ang paghatid ng mensahe na opisyal ay di umabot ng 30 days. And my friend said na wala namang makukulong sa utang. Unless if ang case may Krimen. In my own definition ang krimen ay yung may patayan, may pagnanakaw, mga ganyanan.

    Isa pa sabi ng isag friend ko, dapat nga ipaquits na ang lahat ng may kulang kasi estudyante lahat ehh… then they rented for one reason to finished their studies for EDUCATION for future kasi in this case in japan pag edukasyon ang pag uusapan icoconsider nila ito. And mahina ang systema o pamamalakad ng boarding house. At maraming kulang/mali/at mga problema.

    Any help for this….

    Reply
  2. Hi!
    My auntie is planning to rent her house in Cavite and it was declared as residential area. Now, I want to know if we need to registered it to business?

    Reply
  3. with regards to sec 7 before moving in an apartment, is it illegal that an Owner/Lessor charges advance deposit for utility bills? As the way I understand the law they are only allowed to charge the following:
    1. first month deposit (non refundable)
    2. last month’s deposit (non refundable)
    3. security deposit (refundable)

    I based my question on the move-in deposit an owner asked us worth 8k rent — deposit one month advance+2 months deposit+6k utility bills

    IMO, utility bills should be charged once we have consumed the said bills. Further, I believe that’s already the purpose of the security deposit.

    Reply
  4. Hi,

    Good day! Tanong ko lng po. sa isang foreclosed na property na binebenta ng isang banko at balak ko pong bilhin. nakasaad po sa listing nila na mai nag oocupy sa property pero nung na puntahan ko ng mga ilang beses na (weekend at weekday) wala talagang tao at nakausap ko ang isang kapit bahay nila an nung feb pa walang tao at nag hakot ng mga gamit. gs2 ko sanang tingnan ang loob ng property pero naka padlock po. pwde ko bng pabuksan yun kapag nakuha ko na yung property or na transfer na sakin from bank?

    Reply
  5. Hi. I would just like to ask one question regarding this topic. Does our landlord have the right to eject us from the apartment after a year of contract even if we still want to stay in the apartment? He said he has another contact to rent our unit and it would be less of a hassle for him to choose them over us. He asked us if we are going to rent the house for another year(meaning another full lease contract) but it wasn’t stated in our former contract that we are required to sign or join into another lease contract after a year. This May our 1st year contract ends and as I understand it, we are already not on hold whether to stay for another one year or not. Our plan is to still stay in our unit but not for another year again. Maybe half a year? Your response would be a lot of help and enlightenment.

    Reply
  6. Hi is this site still active? I want to know what are the reasons to forfeit a deposit? We had our house rented last Sept 2014 and the tenant has been paYing late eversince. I sent her a contract on her email last November ’14 but she did not acknowledge. However, we discussed verbally that we can only have the place rented for a year and she agreed. We only asked for 1month deposit and 1month advance. She terminated the contract last march with only 3-day notice. We used her deposit as a payment for the utilities. Btw, monthly rent is at 8,500 and utilities cost was around 3,000. She insists to get the remaining deposit which we would not want to give due to breach of contract. But she said that she never signed any physical contract. My lawyer friend said that the fact that she stayed in our house and receipt the contract and did not appeal is an indication of implied acceptance already.

    I have my statement of account with me to prove that never did I receive her rental payment on time. She’s paid the charges when the delay was 10 days. But for the delayed payments less than 10 days, she did not pay any charges.

    Can I use RA 9653 as a basis to forfeit her deposit? Thanks in advance!

    Reply
  7. Goodam, i have a problem, last 2013 we rent an apartment my brother sign a contract. Now, i already pay for april 19 2015, next month may 19 2015 we are leaving the apartment, my question is do we have to pay for may 19 2015 or not?but the exact date that we are leaving is may 19 2015? I didnt know about the contract so i would to ask if we need to pay for the next month or not? Thank u in advance..

    Reply
  8. I have a question here… How can I determine the current renting fee for my Area? Say in San Jose Del Monte Bulacan for a residential Apartment?

    Reply
  9. hi, I entered into an agreement with the building owner, we both agreed that I will rent the space for 40k a month and paid a 2 months deposit and 1 month advance but after the agreement I did not expected that I will become bancrupt that I can’t pay the rent after that, I stayed in the building for 10 months from the commencement of the contract but I never paid any rent except the 3 months I gave in advance but I didn’t earned also from that building, for now, the owner of the building filed a case against me breaching a contract. what are my options?

    Reply
  10. Good day!
    I have been reading your sites and found it very helpful to me as I was experiencing issues with my lessor at present. First, we do not have any contract being signed though on the first day of our visit to check out the room we asked for it and now, as we had some issues, she’s insisting that she clearly explained to us the rules in the contract and we signed in there when in fact, NO CONTRACT SHOWN in us. Second, we paid the room rental for 1 month advance and 1 month deposit however, we do not stayed for the whole two months and decided to find a better place to stayed on. Third, she didn’t show us permit to operate and certificate of registration with the BIR. A week before our decision to leave, we informed the lessor and her way of treating us suddenly changed. She told us that we are not allowed to use the deposit anymore, nor it was refundable ” as it was stated in the contract” daw. During that week, she let some possible boarders to enter our room during our rest. Isn’t it an invasion of privacy since technically and legally we are LESSEE of the room. Another was she suddenly told us to pay the water and electricity bill higher than the prior agreement of how much it should be(water- 200/head/month & electricity- depends on the bill which will be estimated through each lessee) however, their home usage of electricity was part of the bill and they uses so much appliances and she didn’t stated it to us CLEARLY before we decided to stayed in there. Worst, she shouted at us and make gossips with other boarders which really a ground for public humiliation and verbal harassment. We are thinking of asking assistance from the barangay however, I wanted to asked an advice from you if our complaints with the said lessor is justifiable. Thank you so much and I do appreciate deeply if you can help me with this. More power!:)

    Reply
  11. Gud pm po..may i know if kelangan pa namin bayaran ang arrears namin ng 3 months kung pinaalis kami ng may ari in a week time..ang sabi niya, gagamitin daw niya iyong stall to use it for bodega and accordng to him, di na daw niya ipapaupa… but, we learned na ipapaupa niya pala sa anak ng barangay captain…may we know if ano ang pwede namin gawin? thanks

    Reply
  12. Hi sir! Just wanted an advise about my current situation. Im renting a studio type apt somewhere in pasay since end of april and have not been given a contract then. Just now the landlady gave me a copy of the contract which is not really appealing to my taste.
    I have a receipt of the 1month dep and 1month advance which i paid before I moved into the apt. My concern is that the landlady will not give back my dep/adv paymnt since i didnt sign the contract and would not finish the 1yr min stay at the apt if i chose to move out. Is that legal?
    Would it be okay if i just consume the dep/adv pymnt i made which i think is just fair.. Hoping for your enlightenment..

    Reply
  13. hi sir. good day. i would like to ask lang po, nagrerent po kami ng 8k per dito sa apartment na inuupahan namin. ngun po nagamit na namin un 1mo advance at 1mo deposit namin, nakiusap po kami sa landlord namin na babayaran po namin un rental bago po matapos ang buwan na ito. dumadaan po kami sa financial crisis nagun kay nakiusap kami. HINDI PO malinaw sa amin sa contract na HINDI DAPAT GAMITIN SA HINDI PAMBAYAD SA BUWAN NA LUMALAKAD HABANG NAKATIRA SA NASABING UNIT. pero kaya nga po kami nakiusap binabayaran naman po namin ang mga bills ng tubig at kuryente. nalabag po ba namin ang contract at karapatan po ba ng meari na paalisin na kami kaagad? at ano po ang karapatan ko para ipagtanggol din ang side ko ganung siya nagfile na sa barangay. sana po mabigyan nyo ako ng kaukulang sagot. asap po sana. salamat po ng marami.

    Reply
  14. Hi,

    This is really a great info for the POV of the lessee. I am just wondering if there are requirements that the lessor is required to avail a business permit? Say the number of rooms he is renting out or the amount of lease that will require the lessor to have permit? Or is it really required to avail it even the lessor is just leasing a room or two for a low amount of money?

    Really appreciate your reply. Thank you.

    Reply
  15. Hi Jay,

    I am a lessee in one condo unit. I didn’t renewed my contract for this year. Regarding my two (2) months deposits, two months had passed but the owner didn’t gave back my deposit yet. Of course I settled everything and all the billings before I left the unit. Their reason of not giving my deposit yet is that they will wait until someone will occupy again the unit before they can pay me. Until now, the unit is vacant and open for rent. My point is, what if they won’t be able to get new tenant this year, is it fair to wait till next year for them to be able to pay me with my deposit? I am expecting my deposit be paid after two months. Its already three months but they’re ignoring my follow-up. Please advise…Thank you.

    Reply
  16. Good Morning Sir Jay,

    I have a problem right now with the house I am paying through the developer in short Sir Jay I can’t continue anymore my monthly amortization… yesterday i had received the notice to vacate the property and they just give me 5 days to leave the property… right now I don’t know what I am going to do about that because i dont have enough money to to move out and my two daughters are still studying near the place… what legal action can i do just for them to allow me to stay at least 3 months in the place?

    Reply
  17. Good day, Mr.Jay.

    I am currently renting a bedspace here in Mandaluyong. Last night, I received a “love letter/ejection letter” from the owner. The reason was because of “unfriendly” act, when in fact, it was just a petty quarrel.She didn’t want to hear my side. No verbal nor physical abuse happened. Can I appeal this to the barangay? Because I was told to transfer to other boarding house tomorrow. It wasn’t that easy.

    Thanks in advance!

    Reply
  18. Good day, Mr.Jay.

    I am currently renting a bedspace here in Mandaluyong. Last night, I received a “love letter/ejection letter” from the owner. The reason was because of “unfriendly” act, when in fact, it was just a petty quarrel.She didn’t want to hear my side. No verbal nor physical abuse happened. Can I appeal this to the barangay? Because I was told to transfer to other boarding house tomorrow. It wasn’t that easy.

    Thanks in advance!

    Reply
  19. hi! I am Mark I want to know the legality of being a lease itno a aprtment. I’m now renting a apartment and we have a contract for two years and the amount of the rent is 3000 pesos per month . Now the owner decided to have renovation the whole apartment and all unit. when the time that renovation started we are still staying in the unit while the construction is on going. almost one month already since they started although we the permission from the owner to stay. in taking a building permit is there such rule that the tenant need to move out bcoz the construction is on going and the owner ask you to to do? while the contract still not expired is she has the right to increase the rent its just bcoz they just renovate the unit? and actually we don’t have the copy of the contract boz they refuse to give us. she want to increase from 3000 to 5000 and 1 month advance 2 months deposit?

    Reply
  20. Hi Sir Jay,

    I was researching about a law that would free up the lessee of the responsibility in paying for the repair of the apartment when the damage is caused by acts of nature like typhoons and earthquakes but couldn’t find any. I would like to ask if you know if there is such a law?

    The reason I’m asking is because the apartment that I am renting was damaged by the recent typhoon Glenda that hit Metro Manila and the owner did a minor repair without informing me that I will pay for the cost of it. Now I am being required to pay a certain amount (more than half of my rent) in addition to my rent and I strongly believe that this is not fair.

    Thanks in advance.
    Paula Misty

    Reply
  21. Hi Jay,

    Good day! I have read your post and I think it is great to know knowledge like this, as I also rent a room (actually, bed space). May I ask about the tax that a tenant like me should pay for renting a room?..
    Thanks.

    Reply
    • Hi Chico, it depends on what’s written in your contract. If there is no clause that pretermination will be grounds for forfeiture of your deposit, then I see no reason for you not get your deposit back.

      Reply
  22. Good day Sir… hope you’ll find time to bear with me and provide me some assistance/perspective on how to best deal with my current concern with my landlady…. I’ve been renting out her apartment for 14 years now, and I consider myself a good tenant, at least in terms of payment of rental. Paid mostly in 3-4mos advance, kung maabutan ng delay for 1-2mos, and I make it up to cover payments for subsequent months – just like my last payment while na delay ng 2mons, I paid up for the whole of 6 months last March to cover until end of June due date. Last May 28 she called me up to inform me na kelangan na daw i-vacate yong place as yong may-ari (her sister) is going have it on renovation (it’s a 3-unit apartment building). I’ve requested for longer time, for the until end of this year sana – denied. Then up to September sana – denied. Her forwarded text message (Mid-July, barely 1 and 1/2months since first informed) claiming that long time na daw yong notification nila. Yong ‘actual’ next due ko is around this week pa lang, but they’ve sent a message to the tenant next door na puputulin na rin daw yong power + water supply pag di pa kami makakaalis. I don’t want to pursue ‘legal’ matters as I don’t want to burn bridges. A KP member (not of same barangay where my apt is located and also not of same barangay where my landlady resides) mentioned that I should still be allowed to stay until end of September without having to pay for the rent. This I don’t wanna pursue na rin… request ko lang is they won’t continue with their threat on the power+water cutoff by Aug.1. No response as yet. What would be the most fair and less-troublesome protection I can source out na I will still have access to power+water while still not having cleared out my stuff within August. I hope to be gone for good before August ends. (apologies for the long post 🙁 )

    Reply
  23. Hi,

    nag rerent po kame 12k per month. Tanong ko lang po kung ano ang definition sa advance (as in 1 month adv 1 month deposit) na naayon sa batas ?

    Salamat po

    Reply
  24. hi jay, ung nanay ko po ay may boarders ng 13 years with no contract of lease. only verbal agreements.
    gusto nya na pong paalisin ung umuupa kasi hindi na nagbabayad ng tatlong buwan. ngayon, pinabarangay na anamin para mapaalis at binigyan namin ng letter of ejectment. ngayon po, ayaw umalis kasi may karapatan na daw sya dahil 13 years na syang umuupa samin.

    Reply
  25. i have a problem then also, I am renting before P3,000.00 month since 1991 until now same building but after 4 years they increase after a year they increase again every year nag i increase sila , how is it if there is a law na bawal ng mag increase ang mga apartment since 2009 bakit itong me ari ng building namin eh, panay ang increase? and nag taas din sila ng deposit for 3 months then, and sa contract nila me nakalagay na shoulder ng lessee ang E-vat at iba pang tax……. MAKA TRUNGAN BA ITO ? and I found out na ang receipts nila yung luma pa , wala yung me print ng BIR . pano ito? puede bang i report din ito sa BIR?

    Reply
  26. I started renting 1 unit dormitory October 2010 with monthly rental of 3000, but for the month of June 2014, the owner increase my monthly rental from 3000 to 4000, based on RA 9653 section 4 the rent of any residential unit covered by this Act shall not be increased by more than seven (7%) annually as long as the unit is occupied by the same lessee: How can we address our problem because all dorm rooms was increased from 1500 per head to 2000 per head starting June 2014, they said Pay or Vacate the room.

    Reply
  27. Hi Jay,

    Just needed some advise. I have been renting for 1 year already no contract, no OR being issued for my payments but I have acknowledgement receipts on my payments. Recently, due to some problems i had with my kids, I was not able to pay our utility bills and was able to use my deposit and advance payment. My land lord already advised me to vacate the house in less than 1 month period and also insist that I leave my furniture and appliances behind to cover my bills… I told them that I really don’t want to leave the house leaving all my bills unpaid but since they are forcing us to vacate the place, i just told them that I will be leaving furniture and appliances that will equal the amount of bills that we will not be able to settle and that I will only get the furniture and appliances once I’m able to settle the bills. I just want to know if it is in our rental law that in this situation, the land lord should be the one to choose what furniture/appliances we are going to leave? also if leaving our things to compensate for the bills that we were not able to settle is also written in the rental law? Thanks and God Bless!!!

    Reply
  28. Hi!

    I have a major concern, me and my family (wife and baby) are renting a small studio type apartment in Manila for 6 months now. The lessor/owner of the house ask us to move out since her daughter will now use the said apartment, but she only advice as 2 weeks prior to evicting the said apartment then after couple of few days she texted me if we can move a bit earlier like on June 15 (she called last Tuesday June 3, 2014 asking as to move out on June 23, 2014). I told her it is too soon and we haven’t found a house to move in yet then i found your article here and i red about RA 9653 Section 9c about eviction. And i found there it should be 3 MONTHS FORMAL ADVICE before eviction of tenant. Will this section apply if there is no contract signed between lessor and tenant? What are the grounds to consider if we will not leave on the said date? Please help us cos we are in big trouble right now. We can not move out till we find a new house to rent plus we are having a hard time to find one cos we are both working employee from Monday to Saturdays.

    Regards,
    Bryan

    Reply
  29. my existing lessee and her worker also staying in the same unit the lessee is renting. Monday early morning an incident happened involving the worker and the visitor of the lessee. shot was fired and injured the worker. Police made some investigation, unfortunately the lessee don’t want to cooperate she don’t want to inform whereabouts or personal circumstances of the visitor. In a contract signed by the lessee it is stipulated that in any eventuality such as late payment &/or problematic events within their household, the contract is terminated and the 2 months deposit is forfieted. What happend last monday morning is already public concern bec shots were fired, the worker who suffered slight wound from the gun shot is uncertain if he will file charges against the lessee (obstruction of justice). Is these grounds for eviction? How do I go about it?

    Reply
  30. Hi Jay,

    I just need some enlightenment with the issue we have right now. We are currently renting an apartment for almost a year now. It is 3 storey building and we occupy the second floor. Each unit has its own electric meter. We are a very good payer and we dont miss payments. Our relationship with our landlord is good as well. Last month (April) we received our meralco bill and we where a bit shocked because from our regular bills that ranges from 400-600php it went up to 1500php. We thought that it’s because meralco has already implemented the electricity price hike. in short we paid our bill as we always do. Comes the Month of May we then received the meralco bill and to our dismay it really went over the top. Our electricity bill went up to 2500php. To think we only have 3 electric fans, 1 Led TV which we rarely uses, 1 laptop and 4 light bulbs and we actually stays at home only after our shift. we stay there for just to get a few hours of good sleep. So what we did was discuss the issue with the landlord and he was saying that they had to replace our meter. He cant actually explained the reason why it went that high. we were not happy with his answers and since he noticed that he then blurted that if we dont want to pay his doors are open for us to walk out and find another apartment. We said that it’s not that we dont want to pay, we need an explanation first because we will not pay for anything that he cant explain. Then we meet half way , we agreed to pay just the half and he’ll shoulder the other half of the bill. We also said that we will just finish our contract which will end on August. We thought that everything was settled. after a week another bill came to our door step amounting 700php and mind you it is also for the month of April. So we spoke to him and he said that we also have to pay that bill. What he wants us to do is pay two bills for april. His claims was when the meter was changed to digital the billing for the analog meter continued and over lapped. which we think is far from reality. If you’ll check the billing statement you see that the bill worth 2500’s billing period was april 11- may 11 and the other one is April 13 – May 13. We really that we are being mislead and we feel really violated. Is there anything that we could do to protect our right or do we even have a right as a lessee? Hope to hear from you soon thanks and God Bless 🙂

    Reply
  31. Hi Sir Jay,

    Question lang po, 1year na po kami nangungupahan sa isang maliit na kwarto for 2500.00, ngayon po ngkapoblema, pinapaalis po kami ng may ari sa dahilan ginabi lang kami ng bayad kasi ngtratrabaho po ako, may karapatan po ba ako na hindi umalis kahit pinipilitkami umalis?
    * kada may ererequest din po kami aayusin sa bahay – barado na cr at lababo, tumutulong bubong- lagi2 kami sinasabihan umalis na lang,maghanap dw kami ng ibang malilipatan.- e mahirap po maghanap sa pasay ng mauupahan.
    *bawal ang bisita, kahit kamag.anak, nanay, kapatid issue na sa kanila.pinagbabawal nila mgtagal.
    *at ngayon po sabi sa amin kung gusto po daw namin huwag umalis sumunod po daw kami sa bagong patakaran nila- 150.00 per head ang tubig, 14.00 per kilowatt na ang kuryente, -( may karapatan po ba ako tumanggi sa bagong patakaran nila dahil 1year na kami nangungupahan sa kanila?)

    lugi daw sila sa kuryente at tubig. pano po naging lugi e meron po kaming sariling sub meter, at ang tubig wala kami mghapon mg.asawa.

    Sana po matulungan at mabigyan niyo po ko ng linaw.
    maraming salamat! God bless!

    Regards,
    Junesa

    Reply
  32. Hi jay,

    What are thelaws against the lessor who does not issue an official receipt?
    I have been renting in this apartment for about three years. Lessor hasn’t even issued an O.R

    Lessors reason is, if he will issue an O.R Rent will increase. I don’t even know if the apartment is DTI and BIR Registered. And i know my rights to ask for a O.R. They even say “if we don’t issue a receipt its free”

    My case is, i haven’t paid the rent for about a some months, then we came to an end that lessor and i went to the barangay to have an agreement and gave me such notice to vacate the premise on a certain date, and thus shall i not be able to pay the balances i should leave any appliances/furnitures.

    Is that allowed by law?

    I havent been able to pay the rent due to some short commings and a series of unfortunate events, but still the last time paid i still didn’t get an O.R.

    So now lessor is pissed, correct me if im wrong sir, does BIR pursue these kind of case that the lessor does not have an O.R.?

    Because i really think that somethings not right when paying for a monthly rent and i’m not getting any O.R

    What can i do regarding this sir?

    Thank you so much.

    Reply
  33. hi, i have a problem with my landlord. I am a new tenant in her apartment. Then I was not able to see the first water bill on my first month which is more than 2k then on the next month I got my bill and it was more than 3k. So, I was suprised. I have a small family and my usual consumption a month is only 300 to 400 pesos. I asked my landlord and she insisted that we will share half of the bill which I refused. She kept on saying it was neither of our fault. But I guess, it is her responsibility because its her apartment and I am a new tenant. How can I insist that I will not pay that amount?

    Reply
  34. i am psalm. i want to ask if my landlord has the right not to return my deposit when i cancel my contract of lease 4 months before the expiration of the contract? in our contract there is no agreement that my deposit will be forfeited once i cancel my contract before the expiration?

    Reply
  35. hi jay,
    ask ko lang po kung pwede pa maibalik yung 1month deposit ko sa dati ko tinirhan na kwarto. kasi nakalipat na kami bago matapos ang 2months na dapat ko magamit ang 1month advance at deposit. wala kami contract or agreement. verbal lang po kami. nung una pumayag ang may ari na ibabalik baga kami umalis. ngayon nakaalis na kami ay ayaw na ibalik. nagbago ang isip. anu po dapat ko gawin. salamat po!

    Reply
  36. Hi Jay,

    Thank you for your post. I have read the four legal reasons the lessor can eject a tenant. But I have also read in another link that a tenant can terminate the lease agreement anytime. Is this correct? I want to know the legal basis for this. Our situation is this: We are now renting inside an apartment compound that has 3 units. It is fully fenced and gated. Before we signed the agreement, there were no pets in the area. For some reason, the door 2 tenants decided to have a cat which they allow to roam freely in the complex. It pees, poos, and sits on our flower beds. We complained about this and about the possibility of us or our son being bitten by it to the door 2 tenants and the owners. Unfortunately, they are all unwilling to address our concerns, even after we proposed two options to the owner; 1. for the door 2 tenants to make sure to keep the cat in their house or 2. get rid of the cat. This problem has led to a recent argument and the owner told us that if we can’t stand having the cat around, then we should just leave. We have just renewed our contract which will end on February 1, 2015. After the argument and because of the many issues we have with them, we are willing to accept their proposal. In this case, can the owner decide as to when we should move out and can the owner declare our 2-month security deposit be forfeited?

    Thank you in advance for your time and help.

    Reply
  37. Hi, we are currently renting a commercial space in Cebu City, during that 7.2 quake happened last October 15, 2013 a facade part of our building collapse, immediately after the incident we ordered our staff to go home and temporarily stopped our operations for the safety of everyone.as ordered by our main office in Australia, after that collapsed wall and some cracks in the building, we are advised no stay closed unless a certificate of inspection is being issued to make sure its safe to open again. but the landlord took about 19 days before they issued the certificate. are we entitled to ask lease adjustments?because of our operation loses. can we demand it from our landlord?

    Reply
  38. dati po ako ofw, nagka problema po ako sa saudi, 1 year ako di nakapag padala ng pera sa pamilya ko dahil po sa employer ko. di op nakabayad ng upa ang pamilya ko sa bahay na inuupahan namin. 3,000 php. ang naging utang ng pamilya ko sa may ari ng bahay. nung pinalayas ang pamilya ko sa inuupahang bahay walang maibayad na php. 3,000 kaya napilitang kunin ng may-ari ng bahay ung refrigirator namin bilang kabayaran sa pagkaka-utang na halagang 3,000 php. bale nagkasundo po sila sa ganong usapan. pero nung dumating ako nitong sept. 14, 2013 biglang naningil ung may-ari ng bahay dun sa utang namin sa bahay na halagang 3,000 php. sa upa ng bahay sa dati naming tinitirhan. 1 year na pong pinalayas ung pamilya ko sa dating tinitirhan namin at naiwan nga po ung refregerator namin bilang kapalit sa utang namin. tama po bang bayaran pa namin yon?

    Reply
  39. Hi may mga question lang po akong dapat malaman..I have a complain about my landlady is a termites is a major repair naba sa duplex na bahay? When sabihin ko sa kanya may anay bahay sabi niya sa katulong so…Tapos gusto ko siyang kausapin para matreat ung anay. Pero ayaw niyang makipag usap sa akin, sabi niya its our responsibility kasi kami ang nakatira dito sa bahay na ito. So sabi ko aalis nalang po kami kasi major damage na ang anay. Sabi niya sige para putulan kami ng water at bahay. Paano niya kami puputulan bayad po kami from September 12 to October 12 at mayron pa kaming 2 months deposit. We give her 33,000 one month advance and 2 months deposit. Yong contruct namin is paso na a year ago na di po niya pinalitan.. sabi doon sa contruct namin, is na after na ma expire aming contruct is e consume namin ung 2 months deposit, pero di po nangyari kasi palagi siyang nanghihingi ng renta. Until na hindi kami nagkaintindihan don sa anay don ko nakita sa contract na di dapat ako nagbayad ng 2 months para don sa deposit na maconsume dapat namin. Pina barangay ko siya pero di siya sumisipot.. Worth it ba na umabot kami hanggang sa husgado…By the way binigyan niya kami ng Notice saying that our contract is already terminated May 2 and we have 2 months to vacate our place even na di niya binibigay deposit namin??? Kami rin po lahat nagpapaayos sa sira at ung bahay di livable sa aking anak kc ung mga electrical wirings niya ay walang takip…please need ur reply soom

    Reply
  40. Hello!

    There’s just a few questions that I would like to know about the landlord and tenant’s agreement.

    I am living here in his apartment from a total of 1 year and almost 6 months. After my 1 year contract has ended, He asked me to sign another contract which in the first place I doubted it myself for some reason and I was cornered at that time. I didn’t have time to act when he gave to me the contract to be sign though he gave me a few days to sign it.

    And now I asked the landlord to end the contract early this month September which is 6 months already since I started to sign another contract.

    I asked him to change the contract to 6 months instead of 1 year because I can no longer stay here due to a few reasons:

    The no. 1 reason is the water bill here is way more expensive than the normal water district charges. I confronted him about the price of the water bill and he said “our water is different because we have pumped water from the well” and so on. I don’t even understand that I felt like I was ripped off all these years. I also went to the Water district in our place if how much is the minimum per cubic meter and I was shocked what I had discovered. The landlord charges everyone of us here triple the minimum of the water. Can you imagine that?

    No. 2 reasons is my husband doesn’t like the place no more because it is hot during middays and he can’t stand it.

    No. 3 I can’t pay the bills anymore.

    All I wanted is just to move out here and find another place and I want my 16k deposit back.

    My question is:

    Are these 3 reasons are acceptable in the law to end this contract?

    What are the consequences should I face if I pursue this (such as penalties, etc.)?

    As a tenant do I have the right to do this act of ending the contract?

    Can I get my 16k deposit?

    Thank you!

    I would appreciate a response soon.

    Reply
    • Unang-una basahin ang pepermahan ng mabuti at hanapin sa seksyon kung saan nakalagay ay “Breach of Contract”, kung may nakasaad na hindi na mababawi ang deposit kapag hindi natapos ang kontrata ibigsabihan hindi mo na iyan mababawi pa, ngunit kung ang may-ari ng bahay ang sumira sa kasulatan at may nilabag siya, maaari mong sabihin sa kanya na sya mismo hindi sumunod sa patakaran.

      Tungkol naman sa Water Charges, hindi na po maniniwala ang korte na after a year bago nyo pa nalaman. Pangalawa, ang may-ari na mismo ang mag decide kung magkano ipapatong nya sa inyo, kung may triple na patong then siya na ang bahala ma konsensya pero di naman makatarungan.

      Kung ikaw ay maghahabla maari mong ihabla ang landlord at maipapasok ito sa small claims sa korte isang pa-alala ang paghahabla ay hindi biro sa 16k mo mas malaki pa ang magagasto mo, maari mong ipatawag sa Baranggay o makipag-usap ng maayos sa may-ari huwag mag-mataas sa kanila.

      Mabilis na solution, huwag kang magbayad ng 3 buwan sa bahay at makaka-alis ka ng walang bayad. Walang makukuhang gamit sa inyo dahil hindi yan naka saad sa kontrata pwera lang nakasaad doon bago mo permahan.

      Jaypee

      Reply
  41. gud pm po… sir pls advise me nmn po on what to do…
    meron po kc kming room for rent… my verbal agreement po kmi s isa nming lessee n til nov.30, 2013 nlng po cla kc po d cla mgkasundo ng father in law ko(real owner of the room for rent) kc po d cla sumusunod s mga house rules and another thing my balak dn po kmi iparenovate un by december. bale last june 2, 2013 po kmi ngkaroon ng verbal agreement. kaya lng po start po dt tym hndi po cla ngbabayad ng rent. bale mgpo 4 months n po n di nagbabayad… nagamit n dn po nla advance and deposit nla last april n may 2013… nailapit n po nmin s barangay pro d po npirama ung lessee at d po cya sumisipot s patawag ng kapitan…

    ano po pde namin gawin kc gsto n po nmin tlga cla umalis kc lagi lang nmn po cla nagkakasagutan ng father in law ko at d n nga dn po nakakabayad s rental…

    pls po…really need your help… we want dt lessee out for our peace of mind and heart…

    hope you could helm me… tnx nd God bless you!

    Reply
  42. I have a prob with my landlord, I am a foreign student studying at UPD. The air-conditioner in my apartment broke down so I contacted my landlord who gave me the phone number of a repairer. I payed to have the air-conditioner repaired and normally the landlord would refund me the money either in cash or rent reduction for that month; however this time he told me the repairs are my responsibility. Is the repairs to items such as an air-conditioner; which is a fixture my responsibility or the landlords.

    Reply
  43. Hello Jay,

    I am hoping that you can help me with this one. I met my tenant last dec 2012. She was very friendly and enthusiastic at that time. She rented my house located in bulacan for 6k a month. We didn’t have a written contract and just had a verbal agreement. Since May of 2013, she wasn’t able to pay her rent. She sent me an sms message and promised to pay on the 15th of may. When that day arrived, she told me that she was struggling with her finances and ask for an extension. I told her to pay her rent whenever she is ready. (She also owed me 55k on a different business venture but that’s another story). I trusted her and gave her time. However, when September came (i was busy with other things to check on her after april 15th) i was unable to contact her. I went to the house she was renting from me and found out that she was not living there for almost 2 weeks as per the neighbors. I went to the local baranggay and ask for an assistance so we could check the house (the neighbors told me they were hearing noises suspecting that the woman is being beaten by her husband.) They left some belongings such as TV, a sofa set, a bed and some clothes (They even left their dog alone inside very hungry). I do not know what to do with their stuff and she still owe me money. I don’t know how to reach her (her cellphone and her husband’s cannot be reached). I asked someone to look after and clean the house. I plan to sell the house or lease it again. What do i do with their stuff? Can i sell it? I just paid their electricity and water bills amounting to 10,000. (It has been a week since we entered the house and still not a sign from them.)

    Reply
  44. Hi
    I would like to inquire about the Rental Control Act.. if the tenant is renting 12T since 2007 with no price increase,, is it valid to increase of 15T for this year 2013??? same occupant. And also, how much % is allowed for more than 10T rent.

    thank you and hope for your promt reply.

    Reply
      • R.A. 9653 otherwise known as the Rent Control Act of 2009 only covers rent for residential unit between P1 and P10,000 in NCR and other highly urbanized cities & between P1 and P5000 in other areas. If the rent is beyond these amounts, then this law does not cover it. See section 5 of this law for details.

        Reply
  45. Sir question lang po sa Section 4 ng Rent Control Act as mentioned in this article. Question ko po is this sentence sa Section 4: “Provided, that after such period until December 31, 2013, the rent of any residential unit covered by this Act shall not be increased by more than seven (7%) annually as long as the unit is occupied by the same lessee:” —> Ibig sabihin po ba nyan na after December 31, 2013 ay puede na po magtaas ang lessor/may-ari ng bahay ng more than 7%. Please reply po. Salamat po ng marami.

    Reply
    • Fiscal year maybe basically it’s a year. Unless you guys agreed with 6 months terms if one year term then possible 1 year of tenure. Pero di pa kayo naka abot ng one year no reason to increase the fee.

      “Provided, that after such period until” – means the period of your agreement.

      Reply
  46. Hi All,

    I have a problem and I can’t find an answer because the Rent Control Act of 2009 is only applicable to tenants that pay 10,000 or less. My rent is P12,000, and my problem is this. I told my landlord that I will be leaving, i still have 2 months deposit and I’m already using 1 month’s deposit. My landlord wants me to leave at a specific date, but I told him that I still haven’t found any place to move to, still he insists on the said date (that is the date my one month will be consumed and he needs to keep the other deposit). I tried to offer other alternatives, such as paying for succeeding days until I get a new place but he doesn’t want it (obviously he is being unfair and a dick) and insists on me leaving on said date. I just want to know, can he dictate the day he wants me to leave? If you think about it, i just told him I’ll be leaving and then him deciding that I leave on this date is essentially saying he’s kicking me out. Is there any law that can help me/protect me?

    Thanks and more power!

    Reply
    • You need to base your reason to your agreement. It should be written in there 30 days of notice meaning you should notify them with in 30 days after 30 days you must leave otherwise you ask extension IF they agree for an extension if not then you have no choice.

      For me, after you notify them count 30 days to find a place.

      Reply
  47. Hi Attorneys,

    Good Day. Requesting for your further assistance regarding the lessor of the house. I am currently renting a house for almost 6 years from now and right now we are having a problem with the owner of the house.

    First of all, the one who collects the monthly payment was the father of owner of the house. I ‘ve never met the real owner which was supposedly the daughter of the collector.

    I am a good payer but I commited that sometimes I had a delayed payment but it was only for a days not for a week. And if I did this, I made an advance payment for the next month.

    The problem was about the house improvements that we made to the house. Of course for 6 years living there, we cannot say what will happen to the durability of the house like that roof was rusted and when it rains, the water flows down inside the ceiling of the house and many more.

    The collector which was the father of the owner and the one who I talked to every time we had a transaction regarding the monthly payment. He is the one who always went to the house to collect payments. We brought our concern regarding the problems we encountered to the house. He inspected it and we had an agreement that the total cost of the house improvements should be deducted to the monthly payment. In short, every month, I deducted 500php until it completes the total amount of the said cost of the house improvements.

    But two days ago, my mother received a call from the owner (the daughter of the collector) and asking what was the things needed to be fixed. My mom replied her with all the issues regarding the house and what part of the house we improved. She insisted that before they were no such thing like that and she also said that the improvements should not be deducted to the monthly payment because we were the one who wanted to improved it not them. But in my opinion, she was not the one who I talked to during the transaction. Me and my mom didn’t have any agreement to the owner but to his father. After that the owner wanted us to vacate the house after two months. Just like that with out a proper conversation to the tenants.

    The most terrible part was that the owner texted my mother with some violent and harmful words. She spammed messages and insulted my mom. Because of this, we took a necessary action to file a blotter to the barangay hall for our safety and protection.

    It is stated in the republic act sec 9 letter D that :
    Need of the lessor to make necessary repairs of the leased premises which is the subject of an existing order of condemnation by appropriate authorities concerned in order to make the said premises safe and habitable:

    For your advise attorneys? Does the owner did any violation the rules of the law?

    Regards,
    Mico

    Reply
  48. So pwede po si tenant na di magbayad ng tatlong buwan bago umalis sa inuupahan?

    THEREFORE, sa halagang two month deposit (suwerte mo kung less than two) pwede ka tumira ng AT LEAST three months (pwede mas mahaba kasi dadaan pa sa “judicial ejectment” process, lalo na kung mahal at mahaba ang processo) AT libre ang electricity, tubig, internet, at kung anu-ano pa na kasama sa “utilities”.

    Parang may mali? Legal to kaya pwedeng abusuhin!!!

    Reply
  49. Sir jay,
    Good evening po, nagrerent po ako ng isang apartment and 3000 ang binabayad ko monthly.I’m a good payer though pero ang problema is yung apartment na tinirahan ko ay naparami pala ng tulo sa kisame ,nalaman ko na lang huli na dahil lumipat po ako sa apartment na yun summer pa nun..ngayong naging tag-ulan na naging problema na namin ang pagtulo ng tubig sa loob ng apartment namin kahit sa kwarto ay may tulo na din.gusto na po sana namin lumipat ng bahay,kaya lang dun sa napirmahan ko pong contract ay kapag hndi mo natapos ang kontrata mo ay may 10% kang babayaran kada buwan, 10% ng upa Sir..halimbawa po isang taon ang pinirmahan mo pero naka 6 na buwan ka lang dahil kelangan mo ng umalis,babayaran nmin ngayon ng 10% kada buwan yung natitira pang 6 months..tama po ba yung ganun?napirmahan ko na po kase..pano po ba ang dapat gawin sa ganung sitwasyon lalo na ayaw naman nila agad aksyunan ang problema sa apartment nmin? please help us sir..thank you…

    Reply
    • Non payment of the utilities is not included in the “Grounds for Judicial Ejectment”. Pwede naman magbayad ng rent pero DI KAILANGAN BAYARAN ang magdamagan na aircon, television, computer, at anu-ano pa.

      Parang may mali? Legal to kaya pwedeng abusuhin!!!

      Reply
  50. Hello po. According to this Law kapag magpapaalis ng umuupa dapat bigyan sila ng 3 months. Bakit ang batas na to ay hindi malinaw or hindi nagsasaad na dapat silang magbayad up to the last month. Madami na kaming biktima ng 3 months na yan. Hindi sila nagbababayad kasi nakalagay daw sa batas na to na allowed silang tumira ng additional 3 months for free. Saan pong parte sa batas na to na nagsasabing may libre silang last 3 months? This Law is very shady?!? Need help please. Thank you.

    Reply
    • wala prob dun sa law,, 2 scenario ng aapply ung 3-month periods.. non-payment ng rent for 3 months and notice 3 months prior the date kung kelan kukunin ng lessor ung property for personal use,, at HINDI sabay ang application nung dalawa..

      kapag di nakabayad ng 3-months na rent, wla na extension o free stay, judicial ejectment na agad.. kung 3-month prior notice to repossess, magbabayad parin cla ng monthly rentals hangang dun sa date na kukunin na ung property..

      kapag cnabihan ulit kayo na pwede pa clang magstay ng ilang buwan at iinvoke nila ung “3months”, isampal nio sa kanila ung kopya nitong batas, tpos magpatawag na kyo ng barangay at ung sheriff para paalisin na cla

      Reply
  51. magtatanong lang po sana……nangungupahan po kami sa isang lugar dito sa old panaderos, manila (pagbaba lang ng lambingan bridge, sta. ana manila) at ang lugar po eh masasabi kong shanty, common po ang cr namin at ng namamahala sa paniningil ng upa. ang upa namin ay 3k monthly, walang sariling kuntador ng ilaw at tubig. nung unang lumipat kami dito eh 2k ang upa namin, wala pang isang taong nakakalipas eh tinaasan kami at ginawang 3k ang upa. at yung singil sa amin sa tubig dahil wala din kaming sariling kuntador ng tubig na dating 150 ( 1 adult at 2 kids) eh tumaas sa 500. at ngayon ngang 2 adult nlng kami dito eh ganun pa din ang singil. at nitong nakaraan lang eh nilagyan nila ng padlock ang pinto ng cr, ang bigay ko ng bayad sa tubig eh bago mag katapusan ng buwan at alam naman yun ng namamahala, sa hindi ko maintindihang dahilan eh naniningil na sila ngayon at dahil nga sa hindi pa ako nakapag bibigay ng bayad eh pinadlock nila yung pinto ng cr. gusto lang po namin malaman ang karapatan namin bilang umuupa at kung tama ba ang mga patakarang pinatutupad sa amin dito, wala po kaming kontratang pinirmahan.

    Reply
  52. good day po!
    manghihingi lng po sana ako ng advice.. isa po akong ofw na may pinapa-aral sa maynila. isang 17yrs old at isang 18yrs old. nagrerent lng po ako as bedpace pra s mga anak ko na malapit sa school nila ng 2,800/month.
    hiningan po kmi ng 1 month advance at 2months deposit. ang mga anak ko lng po ang pumirma sa contrata at nong nag-iinquire po ako eh yong payments lng ang sinasabi nila at walang mga charges na sinasabi pero this month po kasi nadelayed po ang sweldo ko kya nadelayed rin po ako ng pagbabayad.
    tanong ko lang po.. sa mga dormitories po ba at mga boarding house e allowed sila mag charge ng 20% aday from the monthly rent? khit na po may advance kmi ng 2 months?
    At nong tinanong ko po sila kung iteterminate ko ang contrata makukuha ko pa ba ang advance ko? ang sabi po nila ay hindi na. at need pa nmin magbgay ng 1 month notice pro d pwedeng galawin ang advance payment nmin. legal po ba ang ganito? kasi napakabigat naman po ng 20% a day na charges. at wala po akong choice kundi tapusin ang 1 year contract ko sknila dhil may pinirmahan ang mga anak ko.

    Sana po ay mabigyan nyo po ako ng advice pra makagawa naman po ako ng aksyon. Di naman po ksi madali ang buhay naming mga ofw. nagtitiis po kami para lang makapag-aral ang mga anak nmin.
    Maraming salamat po!

    Reply
  53. Good day sir,

    Currently i am renting an apartment worth 3500/month, my electricity is being measured through sub meter so i am not sure if the electricity bill that i am paying is over/under rated, also my water bill is 6php per head per day.

    prior to this, a friend of mine is the leasee of the room/apartment. My friend asked me if i want to rent the place, i agreed because it is nearby my work place, i am not sure if there is a contract between my friend and my landlord, that is the first problem.

    Second is that, my payment for the electricity and water got delayed because of an emergency, thus, my landlord told me to look for another apartment, i just want to know my stand on this situation.

    QUESTIONS:
    1. If there is no contract existing, am i covered on this law?

    Your response will be appreciated.

    Thank you.

    Reply
  54. need help. the lessor is claiming that we missed the december 2012 rent payment and that only now he found it out since he is abroad that time and his nephew is the one collecting the rent. we told him that his nephew gave us a “temporary receipt” written on a piece of paper because he ran out of receipt according to him.
    now he is asking for that note but we cannot find it anymore. all we have dates back from may 2013 receipts (non BIR ) and nothing says there about any arrears.
    his nephew further claims(to him) that he came for the rent several times but we are not around, which is impossible since we left for vacation only after our child’s christmas break which is around december 18, 2012. they’re collecting rent every 7th of the month. please advice..thank you.

    Reply
  55. We have been renting for about nine months now, and until today, wala pa ding binibigay na contract sa amin at hindi din consistent magbigay ng resibo yung owner namin. Ano po bang pwedeng gawin? Required po ba magbigay ng contract ang lahat ng landlord? at incase na umalis po kami, ayon sa SEC. 7. may interes po na madadagdag dun s binayad naming deposit, di po ba? Thank you.

    Reply
  56. I have a question. It’s about the Sec.9 – c … if the lessee was given 3 months formal notice in advance. Do they still need to pay the rent for the 3 months?
    Thank you

    Reply
  57. Need a advised

    I have property in Ponte verde laspinas who rented out by the Japanese sad thing they not paying me for 6months now to be exact my agent is useless and I don’t know what to do now because Im currently here in UK.. Yes 6 months that full of lies from them and now my house don’t have electric.. What legal action I can do now.

    Thanks

    Reply
  58. Question,

    Pwede ko po ba ma refund and deposit ko sa rent if hindi ko natapos ang 1year contract? Or pwede ko po ba magamit ang deposit kong 2months without finishing the 1year contract? Thanks

    Reply
    • Depende po yun sa kontrata. If it says their kelangan mo ito gamitin instead na ibalik. ganun lang po.

      Reply
  59. Hi I am looking for a rental home or apartment for a couple. Specifically in Malanday, Valenzuela city. We are in a low income bracket. I was wondering if anyone can send any information if you know anything or information that is available. I am also disabled (on a wheel chair). Although with my disability I am still working. I’m also wondering how can I apply for a Low income housing ? Can I print out the application online ? Thank you.

    Reply
  60. Hi,

    Ask ko lang kung tama bang mag taas ng rent every year? we are paying 6K then last year nagtaas ng 500 and then this July daw magtataas ulit ng 500.

    Hoping for your response. Thanks in advance.

    Reply
    • Every one year lang po puwede mag taas ng renta. Pero same tenant for a year then 7% lang ang puwede nito itaas. Kung mre than 10,000 ang rent mo Covered ka ng civil code kung low than that RA 9653.

      Reply
      • As per as SEC. 5. Coverage of this Act. – All residential units in the National Capital Region and other highly urbanized cities, the total monthly rent for each of which ranges from One peso (P1.00) to Ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00) and all residential units in all other areas, the total monthly rent for each of which ranges from One peso (P1.00) to Five thousand pesos (P5,000.00) as of the effectivity date of this Act shall be covered, without prejudice to existing contracts.

        Please clarify your statement it should not be more then 10,000 a month. If more than 10,000 a month then that is another story.

        Reply
  61. Sir Jay Castillo, desperately need your advice please…

    I quickly browsed through the text, it does not seem like lessors are provided equal protection. I have 2 residential units put up for rent in a low-middle class area, we only required 2 months deposit prior to moving in, it already happened thrice that the lessee, not able to pay the regular monthly rent, consumed the 2 months deposit given to us, and on top of that has arrears on the monthly dues and then left us with thousands pesos worth of unpaid Electric and Water bills. Without us knowing, probably in the middle of the night, they just fled. Now, with the 2 months deposit already consumed, and with one more monthly payment also unpaid, we were left to pay the thousands pesos worth of electric and water bills. Because we took into consideration that this is a low income residential area, (monthly rent is P3,500 and no written, signed contract, just verbal agreement), we were very lenient and accepted Monthly payments on deferred basis. Lessees pay us P1K only come the due date, then will pay another P500 after a couple weeks (yes, weeks) until the total monthly due is paid for. We were very lenient and considerate. Again, we have another difficult lessee, exact same scenario, we told them they have to vacate the house in 3 months time, (we can legally do this right?) but we are afraid that they will run off also and leave us with thousands worth of unpaid electric and water bills. We just don’t want to go through the same ordeal again. Please advise us Mr. Castillo, thank you very much.

    Reply
    • Sorry to say but I’m not Atty. Castillo but I happen to read your problem while browsing the above stated Law,
      well sir, for three (3) consecutive months of not paying the rent of your tenants, that is totally a ground for eviction. since what you asked them is a deposit and not as an advance. so give them a notice regarding their neglect of duty make sure that they affixed their signature on it then after that go to the your brgy. office to ask for an eviction letter or judicial ejectment to ur nearest court.

      Reply
  62. hello, i’de like to inquire if there is such thing as laws for a mis-deal in the transaction between the renter and the owner of the apartment? are the laws biased to the rights of the owner of the rented apartment only? i asked this because as a renter to an apartment, we feel that we are not satisfied, not happy with how they treat us after giving the 1 month advance and 2 months deposit, and we are not interested anymore with how things are going in the rented place. because of this, we want to refund our 2 month deposit and cancel the contract. do we not have a right to push for this?

    Reply
  63. I would like to seek advice from you about our case.

    We are presently renting a house @ P4,000.00/mo. The owner had asked us to sign a contract before we occupied the unit, but had not been notarized. It is said in the contract that we can rent his house for a period of one year and just renew depending on his discretion. I ask for another year extension but to no avail. Now, he is insisting that we have to vacate the unit after a year because they will use the unit. But I’ve heard from our neighbors that he is looking for somebody to rent the unit again…..despite our interest to still continue to rent the unit.

    Can you give us any advise on this matter. We would like to ask if we could file for violation of Sec. 9 , paragraph C of RA 9653. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Whether the contract has been notarized or not, so long as both of the party agreed and understood what is written in the contract, the contract is valid, and it is stated in the contract that it is in the owners discretion whether to continue renting his/her unit.

      Reply
  64. good day sir just inquiring whether there are rules/policies/guidelines concerning basic rent contracts.? if there are any where can i find/get a copy of it. your help in regards is highly appreciated.

    Reply
  65. I would like to open-up my concern for the apartment that we rented. The land lord discussed the basic rules of its contract, ex. 6 month contract, 1 month advance 1 month deposit, etc… If the contract was breached the deposit will not be reimbursed. We agreed so we paid the needed amount. After a week the written contract was given to us. Upon reading the contract, there are items that were not disclosed to us during the first discussion before we moved-in. We discussed it with the land lord and we decided that we’ll not continue our stay. The land lord says that this is a breach of contract so your deposit will not be given back. Our statement to him was we did not sign the written contract so there is no contract at all. He replied that since we’ve paid the advance and deposit then there is a contract. Is this valid? We believe that our land lord has an attorney so before we plan to talk to our land lord we are in the right side.

    Reply
  66. Inquire ko lang po, umuupa ako ng apartment 7,000/month. Ngaun pinapaalis ako dhl gagamitin daw ng may-ari, titira daw ang kapatid nya. Nagsampa ako ng harassment at pag-iiskandalo laban sa tagasingil ng upa which is anak ng may-ari. ‘di na kasi tinanggap ang bayad ko sa apartment. Umabot kami sa lupon ng barangay at binigyan ako until April 15. pinagbayad ako ng 8,000 para sa March 15 – April 15 na rent + electric & water bill. If in case po na ‘di ako makahanap pde po ba i-apply ang RA 9653? May laban po ba ako kung pilit ako paaalisin sa April 15. Sa totoo po hirap ako maghanap at wala pa po akong pangdown sa lilipatan ko if ever makakita ako. Sana po may makausap ako personally para malinawan po ako.

    Reply
  67. Miriam …..

    tanong ko lang po umuupa kami ng bahay 3600 may 2-months deposit 1-month advance ngaun po hindi kami nakabayad ng 2-months pinalaalis napo kmi ng may-ari sabi ko po ngayong march aalis na kami ayaw nila sinisingil pa po kmi ng may ari sa rental kahit at magkukumpiska daw po sila ng mga gamit namin kapag hindi namin binalik yung 2-months na deposit namin tama po ba na magkumpiska sila ng mga gamit namin kapag hindi namin nabalik sa kanila yung 2-months deposit namin pero may 1-month advance pa po kami sa kanila… ano po ba dapat namin gawin…

    Reply
    • That is against the law unless you signed an agreement that if you fail to pay such rental fee then they can take your things as a collateral. But 2 months is not enough for eviction. As per as Section 9 Paragraph b. Print a copy of this law and let him read the law.

      Reply
  68. Sir can you please help us?

    We have a renter who paid us in advance for 1 month advance; 1 month deposit. They paid it last year november but during that time we haven’t generated a contract yet due to some personal issues. now our problem is we gave her the contract last feb. stating our conditions and we told her that we are giving her 1-2weeks to sign it (she told us she need to consult her daughter). it was stated in the contract that their bill day is the 1st of the month but the coverage is from 20-19 of the following month. she keeps insisting that she will pay the rent every 20th since that was that she moved last year nov. 20. up until now she haven’t signed the contract up until now and she wants to delay the payment on the 15th. we already agreed last month that she will pay every 1st we have our conversation thru text recorded in writing. my question is can i terminate her stay because she haven’t signed anything? what i plan to do is let her stay for this monthly coverage and make her vacate the premises on the 20th.

    Reply
  69. Hi Sir Jay,
    Can u give me an advice on what to do…my landlady refused to accept my rental payment for 2mos including the penalty, instead she told me to vacate her unit on February 15. I still have my 2 mos deposit. and worst, she file a complaint on our Barangay “delayed rental payment”. I don’t know what to do…I want to leave her unit but I still cant find a house…Is it right that I still have 3mos to stay in her unit until I find a new unit.pls advice me on what to do.Thanks and more power.

    Reply
    • Malu, based on my readings on rental law, if the landlady refused to accept your payment you have other options on where to give your payment and the barangay chairman is one. Read the full text on RENTAL LAW. Even if you are delayed in payment but settled it after 3 months the problem is resolved, thus you can continue staying in that rented place.

      Reply
  70. hi po good day! my question lang po ako regarding po sa rights nmen family kc po we rented a studio type with store since 2010 ng sept 8 2500 lang po. without contract ngayon 2013 naging habbit na nila magtaas ng gusto nila like sa singil ng tubig nag start kme ng 50 per head ngaun 150 na per head,next ung sa kuryente may submeter kame x16 singil tapos ngaun ng taas nmn cla ng rent 500 tama po ba sila? kahit po wala clang business permit,…. parang gusto ko kc magcng nmn sila business na ginagawa p nilang business…pls advce me salamat po

    Reply
  71. Hi good morning! I need an advice, I was renting a house for more than 6years and every time we failed to pay on time the lessor required me a 10% penalty on top of my monthly rent. and if after 1 month of not paying the said penalty plus the rent..He always told me to vacate his place. I also have a 2mos advance deposit. My problem is he is always harassing me to vacate their unit as soon as possible every time I failed to pay my rent on time. Please advice me what to do. Thanks and more power.

    Reply
    • good afternoon,

      the owner of the lot has padlock the gate which i constructed and refrain us from taking away the properties such as steel plates, GI sheets, woods and ply woods and the fence made of steel which we constructed until i pay the difference from the old deposit to the present monthly rentals.
      i referred it to the barangay but they are not interested to give in.
      may i know what i must do ?
      please help me

      Reply
  72. 10 years ago, i was renting a lot the amount of p2,500.00 and was ask to deposit (2) two months amounting to p5,000.00 with a verbal agreement that the 2 months will be applied on my last 2 months of stay or equivalent to the deposit that i made. I was paying my obligation religiously . At present the monthly rental is p8,000.00 and i am planning to leave the place, however the owner is asking me to pay the difference of p3,000.00 because it is the difference of the deposit that i made previously (10 years ago)
    Accordingly, if I will not pay the difference they will not allow my property to be taken out and they will padlock the gate.
    May i know if the the owner is correct ?
    Please help me.

    Reply
  73. Good day po ,
    Pls. pa advice naman po , meron po kaming nirerentahang lupa for almost 70 years at nagbabayad ng good faith sa may ari ng lupa kami po ang nagbabayad ng amilyar ng bahay, di po namin alam na yung some part ng bahay namin ay part ng lupa ng kapatid ng may ari ng kinatitirikan ng bahay namin e naibenta po dun sa kapitbahay namin , so ang nangyayari po ngayun gusto po nilang tabasin ang bahay namin . hinde naman po namin inaangkin ang lupa kaya lang nag dedemand kami na bayaran nila ang magagstos sa pag giba ng bahay nmin, tama po ba yun na sa part namin? ayaw po kasi nilang magbayad ng danyos sa masisirang part ng bahay namin.
    may karapatan po ba kami sa pag hingin ng danyos sa nakabili ng lupa?
    tnx and more power!

    Reply
  74. Hi Mr Jay!
    I have just found a blog saying the Rent Control Act has expired. Wala na pala akong laban sa landlord ko in case paalisin talaga kami. Kala ko pa naman may pinaghahawakan akong basehan para di umalis. Ano po ang dapat kong gawin sakaling palayasin na kami sa apartment? thanks po….sofia po uli

    Reply
  75. Hi, Mr Jay!
    Sofia here again…sad to say, my landlord has extended his stay probably until the 40 days of his departed mom. So my agony would continue umtil the 2oth of this month.
    Only today I heard him talking to a prospective tenant for the apartment next door,( It is a duplex apartment) and I was surprised to hear how rude he was to that person, a Pastor by profession. He asked, “Sino kayo? Alam nyo ba ang patakaran sa bahay na yan? Kung ang pamangkin pinalalayas” Para pong pinaririnig samin. Kung ang pamangkin pinalalayas kami pa kaya na di nila kaanu-ano? When the Pastor was gone, his sister butted in and said, “Pastor yan” na parang pinaaalalahanan sya. And the ladlord answered back, “Kung sa America nga nagagawa ko dito pa kaya sa Pilipinas!” So, talagang me kabastusan po talaga.
    AS of now po, we are not looking for a house to transfer to dahil di naman nila ako kinakausap kundi puro parinig lang. On the 1oth is my schedule of payment, try ko iabot ang bayad at pag di nila tinanggap, what should I do po? Pay to the City Treasurer, or barangay captain?
    Please kindly advise me Sir Jay. Thanks again po.

    Reply
  76. Good day! I would like to inquire if a lessor of an apartment request the lessee (renting the apartment) to vacate the haws she is renting, how many months can an occupant be allowed to stay in the rented unit until she can find and transfer into a new house? Thanks

    Reply
  77. My tenant asked if they could put counters to sell stuff right outside but within the fenced apartment. This was not part of the signed contract although I OK’d it. The next thing that happened was the tenant asked for forgiveness for being one month late on their rent but promised to double the rent on the 3rd month of occupancy which is today 1/2/12. Then the tenant was asking if it is OK to leave the the screen that they have just installed (without any permission) at the short fence around the apartment in order for the thieves to not get to their for sale goods sitting on the counters. The tenant emailed me that if it is not OK they will take down the security screen. Please advise.

    Reply
  78. hi jay, a follow up question to my earlier post: shouldn’t the damages be covered only by the deposit? the advance rent remains a rent payment to cover the last month?

    Reply
  79. i just need an advice if there’s anyone who can help – kasi po i’ve been renting an apartment for 5 1/2 years now and a good payer ever since. All of a sudden a relative of the landlord died and the landlord came home from the States. Di po kami nakapunta sa burol at tama po bang basehan na palayasin kami dahil lang di kami nagpunta? The mental anguish and torture na nararamdaman ko sa araw-araw everytime na dadaan kami sa bahay nila kung anu-ano ang naririnig namin na di magandang salita ay ganun na lamang po kahirap. Kesyo wala daw po kaming silbi at minumura pa po ako pag nagdadaan sa kanila. May pera po sila at wala akong laban sa usaping pera. Yung caretaker po ang kausap ko nung lumipat kami dito at di ang may ari ng apartment. Kaya dpat po ba yung caretaker lang din ang kausapin ko ngayon tungkol sa problema ko? Salamat po for whatever advice you can give me. Wala po kaming lease contract na pinirmahan. At dipo alam ng caretaker na pinariringgan kami. Yun pong caretaker ay relative po ng landlord. Merry christmas po!

    Reply
    • Hi Sofia, I don’t think your failure to attend the wake of their relative is a valid reason to evict you. That is such a crazy reason. Close ba kayo nung landlord at kailangan andun kayo?

      Reply
      • Yun nga po eh, i don’t even know the landlord personally. He’s the type of a person that is loud and aggressive and everytime I hear him talking I feel some kind of nervous. I fear I might hear again anything said against me.
        Thanks God, they are leaving tomorrow for the States. It’s a great relief. Yun nga lang po, di kami masyadong nakapag enjoy nung christmas and probably not again on new year.
        Thanks po Mr Jay Castillo for the effort in replying. It’s such a great help and I really do appreciate it.

        Happy New Year to you and your family!!!

        Reply
  80. Sir/Madam:

    I would like to know the specific guidelines about the rental business establishment, like laboratory, and drugstore.

    Thank you very much.

    Gilbert E. Bautista

    Reply
  81. hi!
    I have a problem po kasi. m renting a room worth 3k a month. then i received a letter from my landlord na tinataasan nya yung rent ko ng 1.5k dahil daw i m accepting visitors kaya tumataas yung mga bills. (my water bill is free). thing is, yung visitor na yun only spent atleast an hour since hinatid lang naman ako dun. now he is asking me for a 4.5k monthly kasi before i rented the place yun yung asking price nya but since super liit lang naman yung room tumawad ako and nasa contract namin 3k. nakasulat sa contract na shall i allowed to have a co-boarder, a 500php monthly will be added per head. so bakit po 1.5k agad hinihingi nya and i dont have a co-boarder to begin me. tama po ba yung demand nya?

    please i need an advise since he will be asking me for the payment this day. 4.5k is way too much for a price sa small room na yun. by the way, my one year contract ended last may 14, 2012 and la pa bagong contract pero nagbabayad po ako monthly. he doesnt even issues any official receipts. please help? thanks!

    liz

    Reply
  82. Dear SIr;

    Good day!

    I hope you could address my inquiry asap through my email add above…

    I am just concerned regarding the rules they set for the apartment. i rented an apartment for almost six months now. They said that we have to pay rental every 7th of the month and if we cannot comply, everyday they will add 20 pesos until we can pay the said amount. My salary is on the 15th and 30th, so every time, I always pay an excess of 100 pesos and if not paid it will continue to increase, like for example, I got financial constraints just this month and I promised to pay the bill for two months in full, but still they have given me the penalty and it is continuous until the time I will be able to pay for the said amount. Is it reasonable for them to impose those rules and not giving us grace periods?The rental is 2500 that should be paid on the 7th and due to holidays I got short on my finances, now I promised to pay on the 15th next month and I have to pay 5,640 for two months including the penalty. So, the penalty is 640 and it is quite huge amount of money for a penalty for two months I believe. Please advise…

    Also, we have a problem with the water bills here…They are using submeter for each apartment so our water bill is doubled. Our bill reached up to 430 php per month compared to others who are not using submeters…it should only be around 100 to 200 as we don’t use excessive amount of water. It is too much for us and again due to financial constraints just this month, we were not able to pay the first month bill of 430 which should be due last nov.3. Now, the second bill arrived, again it reached to 470…They said they will cut our connection if we wont be able to pay the said amount this time. Some of the tenants here also were not able to pay their bills due to same issues. Do we have any alternative or do we have the right to demand to the lessor about changing the water system to be able to save money? And, is there such thing as water submetering?I have learned from a friend that maybe the owner is using jumper.. I don’t have any idea on this. Please advise..I badly need your help asap.

    Thank you so much.

    Sincerely,

    Cielo

    Reply
  83. Magandang Umaga po!

    We are looking for some legal advice with regards to the rent control law. I was rented a small room, it is a old wooden 3 story house. I’m rented in the second floor, 6 rooms in this floor. I’m rented almost 25 years already, and to be honest of course there are times that we were not able to pay the bills or the room rent on the exact time, but of course we are asking for thier kind consideration about that matters and promise to pay the bills. when I pay the bills yesterday Nov 12, he said that he consult the attorney and he summon me at the barangay chairman and explain my situation. before that bumaba ako sa kanya at sinabi ko na next week po ako magbabayad dahil nga ang mother ko na confined sa hospital for almost 1 month in ICU so ang dami kung binabayaran. and tanong ko lang kailangan niya ba kaagad kami 3 of co boardmate na ipabarangay? Matanda na kasi 80 years old na ang may ari ng bahay. ang isa pa namin problima ang CR natulo galing sa taas at luma na ang bowl ang lababo natulo narin galing sa taas nilagyan nalang namin ng tarpulin para makagamit kami ng lababo, sinabi na namin ang problima namin pero wala pa rin action. Di ba kailangan pag nag paupa ka ng bahay mayroon ka the followings: 1. Permit to operate leassing business. 2. Registration with BIR. 3. Issuance of Official Reciept. 4. Certificate from Burreau of fire protection (based on fire protection code) e wala nga kami fire exit at fire extinguisher . ang tubig namin 4.00 pesos 1 galoon at may oras pa. pag nag patubig kami nililista yan sa bawat kuarto kung ilan na galoon, hindi lalagpas sa 5 na galoon ang bawat cuarto, for example ang bilang namin sa 2nd floor 20 galoons times mo sa 2 min. kasi 1 gal. is equal to 2 min. pag hindi ka nakapuno dahil kung minsan mahina ang pressure ng pagbukas niya ng tubig, kawawa ang hindi malagyan. ikaw ang sasagot sa kapit kuarto mo kasi naka record na sa kanya ang tubig mo kung ilang galoon sa isang araw ang pinalagay mo. ang sa amin lang may karapatan ba kaming lumaban sa mga patakaran niya sa mga nangungupa sa kanya. Maraming salamat po.

    Reply
  84. Hello,

    Could you please help me out as I don’t know where I stand. I just recently moved into a condo unit, I have been there for no more than one month. I have fully paid the monthly rent and the deposit and advance. We had a little misunderstanding with the landlord and decided not to continue renting however, there was no contract that was presented to us nor have we signed any document. The only agreement that we had is the payment and he (the landlord) told us that he will shoot an email with the contract but there was never a contract sent to us. Now the landlord won’t release our advance and deposit payment. I understand that the deposit shall stay with him to pay for the unpaid dues such as electricity, water bills etc., How can we get him to give back the advance>

    Reply
  85. Good day po. I have a question regarding section 4 of the Rent Control Act. I have a friend who is renting a small room of 2,000.00 per month. She has been renting this room for 13 months. The owner of this room told her last month that the rent will be increased by 500.00, which is more than 7% annual increase stipulated in the law. The owner has other rooms for rent and had increased the rent by 500.00. The lessees of these rooms are not aware of the Rent Control Act. To what office does she has to write so air her complaint on this lessor. Even the lessor is not aware of this Rent Control Act. Thank you.

    Reply
  86. hi. mag inquire po ako kasi naka submeter lang po nirerent namin., ayaw po palagyan ng sariling kuntador ng nagpapa upa kasi may utang dati yung huling tumira sa meralco. pag po ba kami nagpakabit at nagbayad ng unpaid bills nung tenant dati pwede po iawas nagastos namin sa kuntador sa renta namin? saka po kontrata namin nakapirma kapatid nila pero nung nag usap usap po sila sa ibang account na kami naghuhulog ng bayad. dati po kasi sa isang tao lang. ngayon sa buong pamilya napo yung renta namin. wala po kami bagong contract sa kontrata po na hawak ko 1 month adv 1 month deposit. sa hulog po namin sa bagong namamahala eh 2 mos adv at 2 mos deposit? verbal agreement lang po na sa new mamangement kami maghulog pero di naman po nagreklamo yung kapatid nila na kapirmahan namin sa kontrata. ano po ba legal basis nun kung sakali magkagulo sila magkakapatid about sa rent namin> saka yung kuntador po. sino po ba dapat may provision nun. yung nag papaupa o yung uupa pa ang magpapakabit?> salamat po

    Reply
  87. sino po ba dapat mag provide ng kuntador ng kuryente? yung nag papaupa o nangungupahan? pano po kung yung nagungupahan pakabitan ng kuntador kasi ayaw ayusin ng nag papaupa tapos binayaran yung fees at unpaid bills ng tenant before makokonsider po ba na renta ng nangungupahan yung nagastos nya since ayaw naman ayusin ng nag papaupa? salamat po

    Reply
  88. hi! good day! i have some questions about the law of housing rental.. we have been rentinga bungalow house a year a half and i am confuse about the terms of the owner. (1) in our contract, they stated that we can use all the premises except for 1 room (which is the masters bedroom) not to use so they locked it up BUT they made a storage room at the back of the house but they dont want us to use it. do i have the privilege to use that storage room? (2) from time to time one of the nephew of the owner visited the house, is he allowed to enter the house and investigate the looks inside the house we were renting? (3) this happens recently, the owner of the house visited us (shes from the US), she saw the back with many this commonly known as “tambak na gamit” and told me not to put some things at the back. i want to reason her that there is no place to put my things because we have no storage room and they dont want us to use their storage room. what should i tell her? (4) and lastly, are they allowed to stay here in the house for a couple of days because they have their own room here?

    Reply
    • Hi Icon, I believe there is a problem with your agreement, it seems what was written is not being honored. Of course, as tenants, I believe you have a right to privacy, etc. You can always reason and talk with your landlady and explain that you also need storage for your things. If they will use the room excluded in the contract, I believe they have the right to do so.

      Reply
  89. Hi Jay

    have question here cause we’ve affected of flooding during Habagat, flood remains for almost two months we did inform our lessor that we will evacuate immediately due to hazards of staying their but can we still refund our security deposit,, she insisted soo to return our deposit because of the contract we signed we can’t consume our deposit to stay their and risk our safety, but she insisted to return our security deposit we even bargain our lessor to return atleast half of our deposit, but she stands not to return it, is their a law that tell a contract to be terminated due to flooding or force majeure
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Hi Xian, what does the contract say about the conditions where the deposit can be returned? I believe there is no law that specifically says a lease agreement can be terminated due to force majeure, this has to be explicitly stated in the contract.

      Reply
  90. Hi,
    I want to move into a condo unit right now but the owners insists on 2 advanced +2 deposit. I told them about this law but they didn’t care and still stands on the 2/2 deal. Worse is, now they want to include 12%VAT Is there anything I can possibly do about it and still rent the unit with peace?

    Reply
  91. Good day po! Kailan pa ba nagte take effect ang rent? Upon payment of advance and deposit or upon occupancy? Nagbigay po kasi ako ng 2 months advance and deposit on the 3rd week of March but we occupy the house on April 11 dahil may mga inayos pa.
    We paid our rentasl beginning May up to August. On August 31 we were asked to vacate the premises as soon as possible dahil gagawin daw pong garahe para sa new car niya. But sinisingil pa kami ng Landlord namin ng 5,000 pesos for the month of March gayong April na kami nag-occupy. Ano po ba ang tama? Please advise.Thanks and God bless.

    Reply
  92. Good PM! I would like to ask if we can still get the half our payment to this room that we are renting we only used 8 days of staying and we also have an advance and deposit payment. We don’t have any contract neither he never let me sign in any receipt the time he gave the receipt for deposit he walk away as fast as he could then as we read the receipt he wrote the deposit will be consumable with in 8 months. The first time we talked he never said it, just in the receipt that we don’t have any agreement. Another one do the owner of the house has the right to open the rooms when the tenants is not around and when they are angry they used to scold,degrade us and threatened us that He will throw our belongings outside His house. His care taker scold us and said malicious statement to our characters though they don’t really know us and she knows everything she is telling is all untrue. What can you advise on our part?

    Reply
  93. gud day can anybody advise me regarding the two months deposit on renting, it can be withdraw? , when we are going to vacate the premises , is it on the new rental law
    or it is an owner option to return the 2 months deposit .,I am planning to vacate the place, I paid all my remaining bills, elect. water, and rent, but the owner refuse to return my deposit, he want me to use my 2 months deposit instead. we dont have any written agreement and contract. any help regarding this is highly appreciated. thank you./// Mr. Tony R

    Reply
  94. gud pm….tanong q lng po sana kung pwd po kya un n bgla nlang kmi pnapa.alis sa apartment n inuupahan namin kht wala namang closure sa brgy ung usapan n hangang 6mos nlang kmi…….actually atty po ang may.ari nun at kung 22usin squater po ang lugar namin……tapos pinuntahan po ang mama sa bahay ng may.ari khit cnabi q n po n d pwd kausapin kc 170/90mmHg ang dugo nya….so para hndi lumala ung nararamdaman nya nkipg.areglo po xa at sinulat ng chairman sa kapirasong papel n by dec 2012 alis n kmi sa apartment n un…anu po b ang pwd naming magawa nun ei ala p nmn kmi malipataN……SANA PO MBGYAN KASAGUTAN PO ANG BAGAYBAGAY N GUMUGULO SA AMIN..TNX PO HNTYIN Q PO ANG SAGOT NYO..

    Reply
  95. Hi Sir,

    I would like to ask you about my problem. I rent one of stall and I have one month advance and two months deposit. In my contract they said I can’t refund my 3 months but I can use. Now the problem is I need to vacant that stall for reason I need to move at Cavite because my house is already done. I use one month for my rent and I have two months left they said I can refund because that is in our contract. That is true if I will leave that stall I can get my two months deposit? Please advice me sir.. Thanks

    Reply
    • Hi to all,

      Is this RA 9653 is applicable for Commercial Units? If not, do we have any laws as our guidelines as a renter of Commercial Units?

      Thanks,

      Rico

      Reply
  96. Dear Jay,

    I am currently renting an apartment with Php 8,500 monthly rent for a year already. I received our Lease Conract renewal yesterday since we are near the end of our 1-year conract. But in this renewal contract it stated there that they are asking for 10% escalation rate upon signing. They did not include this information in the first year Contract (as Im assuming of course they wouldn’t do) I would just like to know if what they’re doing is legal? Or, can I show them this particular Article on Rent Control Act before signing?
    Hoping for your advice soon.

    Thanks-Gigi

    Reply
  97. hi, Jay!

    What happens if the landlady doesn’t issue any OR? I’ve been renting this house for 3yrs now and the landlady only issues receipts that you can buy from the bookstore.

    Reply
  98. Magandang araw po, hingi lng po sana ako ng advice, were renting commercial studio type her in Pasig in the amount of 5,500, and then pumunta po d2 ung katiwala ng may ari at sinabi po samin na mag increased daw po ung renta tanong ko lang po pwede po ba un na agad- agad na mag taas? at Kailan po ba dapat mag taas ng rent ? kc po biglaan nman ung pagtaas nya,eh masungit po ng konti ung landlady nmin,lagi po nyang sinasabi kung ayaw mo umalis ka d2 s apartment ko.thanks po sana masagot po ung katanungan ko .

    Reply
  99. Hi,

    this site is very helpful.

    Ang tanong ko nagadvance ako ng 10k for an apartmetn in less than a year umalis ako at nagamit ko yung 5k na advance. ngayon kukunin ko na yung 5k ang binabalik na lang ng landlady ay 2800 dahil daw may “cleaning fee na 1000” at “notarize fee of 500”. Wala sa contract namin ang “Cleaning fee of 1000” at pati yung pa notaryo ng contract. Supposedly ang dapat na less lang sa 5k na naiwan ko ay yung 600 na bills ko for utilities. Tapos sa contract copy ko walang beginning at end date pero sa copy nila meron na. Sana po matulungan niyo kung ano ang askyon na dapat kong gawin. Thank you.

    Reply
  100. Magandang araw! Isaguni ko lang po ang problema namin. LAst Nov. 7, 2011 nagrent po kami ng space sa isang building for our business. We pay 2 months advance in cash form and check for 3months deposit.They only gave us OR. Contract will be given next monday daw.  Unfortunately nagkaroon po kami ng problema and we settle to withdraw it last Nov. 10. 2011. Kinausap namin sila and we both agree to deduct our damages made. We follow up many times but they refuse to settle the amount to be returned and make excuses. So we wait. Last Dec. 15 they talk to us and said that the cheque is no longer to their custody but they will make action to trace where is the cheque. About the cash we paid, They say that they will return only half of the amount which is equivalent to 1 month rental fee. So its okay with us.. They promise to give it next tuesday in form of cheque. But unfortunately until this date… hindi pa po nila binibigay ang cheque and also they say they can no longer trace the cheque we give them. Imposible naman po na di nila matrace un, since they have books and record of all the cash flow. We are losing our patience and want to seek legal advise. Fortunately, i found your blog and hoping u could help me sir. Thank you very much in advance. 

    Reply
  101. hello po, tanong lang po.is it legal na taasan po ang renta namin ng 10% every year?hindi po kami pumirma sa huling contrata kasi po parang napakalaki naman ng increase nila. wala naman po silang ni rerepair sa bahay nila..huli po namaing usap ng landlord namin e mag tataas nanaman daw po ngaung taon ng another 10%. please help us undertsnad the law abt house rental….please email me at odi.asia maraming salamat po!
     

    Reply
  102. Commercial Rent Problem. I have a problem with our lessor, instead of renewing our lease contract, they opted to make it a new contract. Along with the new contract is the 10% increase in monthly rent, they are also asking for me to increase the deposit of 4 months + 10%. This is the first time I have encountered a lessor like this. Is this even legal? We are old lessee, is there a law that prevents abusive lessors?

    Reply
  103. pls help me to sittle the rent of electrical company post in our land and also tha water pipe of the water company in our place.they just have a free rent but we pay to them our monthly bills in both pf there company…

    Reply
  104. gusto kong singilin ang water district at electric corp kasi naka tayo ang poste nila at ang mga linya ng pipe nila sa aming lupa. pwedi po ba yun?

    Reply
  105. ayaw ko na pong i-renew contract ng rent namin sa house. ang nasa contract namin eh non-refundable yung advance pero la nmn  nakasaad na non consummable daw ang deposit namin at yun yung ini insist nya… pwede po ba yun?

    Reply
  106. Hello, i have a question, i am renting a studio type apartment in Makati area, actually our water bill is quite high for our consumption, because of this we contacted and asked the contact person of the building where we are renting. She told us that that includes utilities for the guards, but before she never told us about that. and also is it right for them to change the computation of the “WATER BILL” just to compensate for their expenditures (we only have a sub water meter). Isn’t it better to have a separate bill for utilities of the guards?? Is it right for them to do a computation like that without informing us before also MAYBE manipulating our water bill? tnx.

    Reply
  107. Nag-aapply din po ba to sa mga landlords or landladies na hindi maibalik ang remaining balance sa renta? hindi ko po kasi makuha yun balance ko at ayaw nila ibalik ng walang dahilan…. Please help me.

    Reply
  108. I let two Koreans to rent my apartment, we don’t have paper contract, But we have oral contract that they will live here for 3months, I got one month deposit and one month advance, but they just stayed here for 10 days and they want to leave because they found another house, what should I do with the money?thank you

    Reply
    • What should you do with the money? Will it help if I send you my bank account so you can deposit it?

      Seriously though, I think you should ask the Koreans instead. I think it’s fair to keep one month’s worth of rent, and just return the 1 month deposit. It’s not your fault they want to leave, right? But if you feel it’s unfair to charge them a month’s rent for 10 days stay, then pro-rate the rent instead and return the rest.

      Reply
  109. gud day sir,

    hingi lng po sna ng advice,were renting aprtmnt her in taguig in d amount of 2,500,nw pmunta po d2 ung ktiwala ng may ari at sinabi po smin n mg increased dw po ung renta d2 s apprtmnt mgiging 3,000 n dw po ok lng pb un? kc po biglaan nmn ung pgtataas nya,eh masungit po ng konti ung landlady nmin,lgi po nyang sinasabi kung ayaw mo umalis ka d2 s apprtmnt ko.nag print npo ako ng republic act 9653 pra ipakita kpo s knya,ano pb ung pwede nming gwin.thnk u po s response!

    Reply
  110. I am contemplating to buy a bank foreclose property but there is an existing tenant. It seems the tenant wouldn’t vacate the property. In case I pursue buying it, is there a way to evict the tenant from the property? What are the legal process needed? I always hear that it is difficult to removed the tenants from a foreclosed property. I hope you could give some inputs.

    Reply
  111. We are living in one of our Uncle’s Apartments for 10 years now (FREE, no rent being paid). He is now asking us to vacate the premise since his son is going to use it. Is three months advance noticed applicable?

    Reply
    • Mr. Soberano,
      If I were you, I would find it in my heart to look for a place to transfer ASAP. Nakakahiya naman sa tiyuhin ninyo kung hihingi pa kayo ng 3 months notice. Pinatira na nga kayo ng libre tapos hihirit ka pa. Hanap na agad ng lilipatan…. NOW NA!!!

      Reply
    • hindi ba kakapalan ng mukha yun? libre stay nyo sa apartment tapos gusto nyong mag-avail pa ng rent control law? libre na may sukli pa? try mo kayang simulan sa ganitong lines – “Tito, maraming salamat po sa free stay for 10yrs, cge po hahanap na po kami ng malilipatan”.

      Reply
  112. Hello everyone, thank you for the comments. However, if you are seeking legal advice, we cannot provide such, this is already beyond us.

    If you want, you can still try to get free legal advice on this forum that I found: http://www.pinoylawyer.org/t5116-seek-legal-advice-asap-contract-of-lease

    Please take note of the forum owner’s warning and disclaimer which I have pasted below and is similar to our own disclaimer.

    “Warning and Disclaimer: I am not your lawyer; and you are not my client. With the limitations of an Internet forum, a thorough review of your concern is not possible. View my comments at YOUR OWN RISK. It is best to actually retain a lawyer for your individual concerns.”

    Thank you for understanding.

    Reply
  113. sir. pano po kapag hindi pa naman tapos ung 3 months tapos sila pa ung maaangas at pinag mumura pa kame. tapos nang aaway pa. tama po ba yun sa sarile pa nameng bahay. hindi nanga po sila nakaka bayad tapos ganun pa sila. anu po ba ung dapat gawin. may LAW po ba para mag paalis sa bahay. kapag abuso at nangbabastos na sila? kailangan po ng agarang pag sagot. MARAMING SALAMAT PO

    Reply
  114. Hello! I am in dire need of help regarding with our rental conditions. I am renting an apartment unit here around Malate with my sisters and my friends. I just want to know if there is a law here in our country for landlords who does not issue official receipts to their tenants and what are the penalties for this? They are just giving us receipts than can buy at bookstore. On the other hand, we don’t receive an official reading of our water bill. They are just simply issuing us a small piece of paper with the caretaker’s handwritten of water bill. It’s also questionable because it always drops on 1,400+ pesos, as if there’s an exact amount due of water bill every month. Now, we conclude that we don’t have our own water meter unlike they told us before. Please email me for this essential matter thank you very much!

    Reply
  115. Hi Jay,

    Just wanted your opinion about this particular scenario. A hardware business rented the lot next to us containing a house which they have converted into a store. For some personal The owner decided to sever the contract with the original contract and inquired the intentions of the new renter. The owner and renter were not in agreement so the owner told the renter that he has 60 days to vacate the premises. They have moved most of their stuff off the property but a day after the given 60 days, his people were still there. We finally have to tell them that they still own the last month rent and to leave the area since we will be putting the padlock there. They left behind a delivery motorcycle with a sidecar and few hardware materials. Can we sell these in lieu of rent? How long should we wait until we can legally dispose of the property as new renter is about to come on board. Thank you for your assistance in advance.

    Reply
  116. Good Day Sir,

    nangungupahan po kmi sa provicial city worth 5thou monthly. tanong ko lang po about sa maintenance. madami n pong loose paints yung loob ng apartment at faded n rin yung paints tapos may mga leaks na rin sa wall and kisame. sinabihan ko na po yung owner na ayusin pati repaint pero wala daw silang time. then, sinabi ko na ako na lang magpapaayos tapos ibawas na lang sa rent yung expenses pero ang sagot po nila hindi daw pwede yun. ano po ba ang rights ko dito?

    Reply
  117. Hi po, i need your advice po, kasi hindi na po ako tutloy sa kinuha kung apartment pero nakapagbigay na po ako ng deposit na 10k, balak ko sanang kunin pero ayaw ibalik sa akin ng landlady, wala pa naman kaming contrata na pinirmahan kasi di pa naman po ako nakakapaglipat. Sinasabi nya po reservation un eh may reservation po ba na mas mataas pa ang presyo sa rental ng apartment? 8k per month ang rental ng apartment na iyon ang naigigay ko sa kanya ay 10,000 php. Ano po dapat gawin ko. thanks hope to hear from u soon

    Reply
  118. hi po. I need your advice po kasi po balak ko mag back out sa nakuha kung apartment. Nakapagbigay na po ako ng 10,000 deposit ayaw na po ng owner ng apartment ibalik. Wala pa po akong pinirmahan na kontrata sa kanya. At isa pa po ang inilagay nya sa resibi po ay reservation daw ung 10,000 na binigay ko ang rental fee lang po sa apartment na un ay 8 thousand per month. Ano po gagawin ko para makuha ko ang perang naibigay ko sa kanya. Di pa naman po ako nakakalipat doon.

    Reply
  119. Hi good evening, I badly need your help, i hope you can give me an advice. Kasi nagrent po ako na may 1 year contract. Nakastate po sa contract na ang 1 month deposit and 1 month security deposit ay non-refundable kng hindi matatapos ang 1 year. But wala pong nkasulat don na ‘non-consumable’. Ngayon po nagpaalam ako sa kanila na iko-consume ko yong 1 month advance and 1 month deposit, at snabi ko n ang one month security deposit ay saka ko na kukunin after ng stay ko or after madeduct yong mga bills ko. But ang sabi lang sa akin na since hindi ko matapos yong 1 year contract ay hindi ko rin daw maconsume yong 1 month deposit…ano po ang dapat kong gawin dito? Makatarungan ba talaga to?

    Reply
  120. good am mr castillo, I would like to ask if my situation can pursue to a trial court with a high chance to fight for it. I have a contact for 2 years in a 1 unit commercial building costing 10,000 per month. however, my business started at september 22,2010 because the Unit is still under construction from the month of May, June July and early weeks of august… we started the business at september 22,2010 but the lessee wants to less my cash advance for the month of august, i diddn’t refused and i also agreed. they start lessing my 50,000 cash advance from august 22, 2010 to december 22, 2010.. I started to pay in cash basis from january 22, 2011 – April, 2011. After that i failed to pay the following wich is May 22. since that day they are harrasain us to leave the place,because we don’t have any deposit and the 50,000 already consumed. but the problem is the keep insisting that if we leave, our payables left will be cost 20,000 pesos. I believe, I only did not pay from may 22 so this coming june 22, 2011, my payble will only cost for 10,000 pesos. and when we are on the barangay,she is now adding my payables,

    from the month of May, June, july of 2010 (the months that we start to construct the place , because we help her to finished the unit thats why I have 50,000 cash advance)

    and

    demanding for 20,000 pesos… 2 months delay for the month of April22 to May 22 and May,22 to june 22 OF 2011..

    if you review from the above statement, from the agreed month, august 22 – december 22 of 2010 they terminated my 50,000 pesos…
    thats why i gave her 10,000 cash monthly starts from january 22 up to aprill 22. I only failed to pay on may 22. Mr. castilo what can u say about my situation? thanks

    Reply
  121. I hope that you can help us out. We are renting a house at Paranaque for p10,000 since 2009. The contract was for a year but had not renewed. We were asked to give 2 mos advance and 1 mo deposit. The 1 month then, I found out was for commission to those who referred the house to us. But last year, we were not able to pay so we consumed the 1 mo. 2 weeks ago, I was texted by lessor that we have to find another house for the reason that we have many dogs and she said I ddn’t inform her. I told her, right at the time I inquired this house, I already informed her I have dogs, and she said it’s ok. Now, after almost 3 years, she will reason out this. Besides, she said her son will also use this for personal reasons. My business is a canteen right before this subd and it will be very difficult for me to also transfer as we have no house helper and will spend another 2 mos adv and 1 mo deposit. That is very expensive as I am only earning from this canteen. And if the dogs as 1 of the reason, there is no prohibition on the law about this. I am paying in time and has 1 mo deposit unconsumed. So if there are anything destroyed, that can be offset from the deposit. How can we also restrict them from getting another tenant, as per law, they are not supposed to lease within the year upon vacancy. I know that the lessor is just giving alibis so she can increase rent once we vacate and get another series of advances should there be new tenant here. How can I get legal protection also? We are also looking for a house, but definitely not too soon as I have to save for another series of deposits. I cannot get such amount too soon.

    Please help us out.

    Thanks.Suzette

    Reply
  122. just like to ask, who is responsible for the repairs of the apartment , is it the tenant or the owner? coz our units and three others already need a repair, one of the tenant already raised the concern to our landlady , and she said that the tenants should shoulder all repairs and if she will be shouldering the repair then the tenants should vacate the unit and she will just look for another tenant. need your help about this.

    thank you.

    Reply
  123. Good Day! We are looking for some legal advice or articles with regards to the Rent Control Law then suddenly end up here in your page, and i was to admit that your post is really helpful. Just got an idea about my rights as a Lessee or Renter. This is how the story goes, we are renting an apartment somewhere here in Parañaque for almost 4 yrs. and to be honest, of course there are times that we were not able to pay the bills or the house rent on the exact due date, but of course we are asking for their kind consideration about that matters and promise to pay the bills before a month. Yesterday we just got a notice from the owner saying that we have to find another house to move-in to and the reason behind this was because of the late payment, they are forcing us to move-out on their premise within 15 days, and of course for being a simple person who’s earning is just hundred above the minimum rate, it will be very difficult for us to have enough money to pay for the new house that we will be renting, and its true! its none of their business anymore, but as far as i believe they should give us atleast 3months before forcing us to move-out from their premise. Now, the real deal is. . . i am not quite sure if this apartment is really registered or licensed? they dont even have a fire exit and fire extinguisher and when its past 12am the gate is already locked! they dont even giving us a duplicate key so in short, when its 12am we were all a prisoners on the said premise, but i heard rumors that they are just prioritizing tenants who are able to pay bills in advance or on time. Im thinking to ask for some legal advice on what should we do and to know our rights as a renter as well, from our Barangay or City Hall, but here in Parañaque this family is well known, they do have influences, connection to big people (specially in CITY HALL) that’s why im a thinking twice to do a step because of this. Hope you can gimme a helpful advice with regards to this matter and what should i do to fight for my rights. Hoping for you immediate response Mr. Jay Castillo.

    Reply
  124. Hello po….
    patulong naman po.

    Ganito po kasi yung nangyari…
    Nag rent kami ng Bhouz ng kapatid ko, kaming dalwa sa isang kwarto. P2,400 per month then nag pa 1 month deposit ang may ari.
    Ang bhouz po actually is sobrang init kasi walang ventilation, tas may bakery pa ng may-ari directly sa baba plus maiingay pa ang mga workers nya so basically di namin nagustuhan ang place sa 1st month kaya ng plan kaming umalis at lumipat.
    Nagpaalam naman po kami na lilipat at sabi ng may – ari, ibibigay daw yung deposit pag umalis daw kami.
    Ngayon po eto po ang naging problema, ayaw po ibigay ang deposit ng may ari ngayong wala na kami dun kasi lumipat na kami sa ibang boarding house.
    Ang sabi po ng may -ari, wala daw syang ibibigay kasi more than one instance daw nakitulog at nakiligo ang friend ng kapatid ko sa bhouse / kwarto namin.

    Tulong naman po…parang sobrang laki naman ng P2,400 para lang dun.

    We need advice po kasi 1st time po naman nag boarding house.

    Salamat po sa pag reply… or please paki email po ako sa crimsondawn24@gmail.com

    Reply
  125. Hello po may karapatan po ba ang MAY ARI na kuhanin o pasukin ang inuupahan ko at nag inventory sila ng MAY ARI AT TAUHAN ng barangay na wala ako. Ang isinulat lang niya ay iilan lang ang marami na tulad ng mga gamit sa parlor lahat ay ni wala kahit isa. kasi po noon una libre daw ang kabila doon ko daw ilagay ang gamit din noon di ako nag agree sa gusto niya na sa kanya pangalan ilagay sa business permit eh noon di ako pumayag doon na po siningil na niya ako at di ko ngah makuha ang gamit kasi noong una 12k lang utang ko din noong nagkita kami ulit sa barangay naging 30k na. Din sinabi ko bakit yon lang nakasulat sabi niya wala akong mga gamit eh nakita po ng mga kapitbahay at yong naging cutomer ko sa parlor sila po nagpapatunay. At pababayaran niya sa akin ang 30k pero kung ano lang sinulat nya ay yon lang makuha ko. Hindi naman tama yon magbayad ako ng 30k tapos ang ibang gamit lalo na ang pagkakitaan ko na pangparlor ay hindi niya ibigay.
    Pinasok po niya ang inuupahan ko na wala ako at pinadlock na walang pasabi man lang. Ano po ang maikakaso ko sa kanya kung sakali magdemanda ako at may laban po ba ako sa gagawin kung pagsampa. Please i need help.

    Reply
  126. Hello po may karapatan po ba na kuhanin o pasukin ang inuupahan ko at nag inventory ssila ng barangay na wala ako. Ang isinulat lang niya ay iilan lang ang marami na tulad ng mga gamit sa parlor lahat ay ni wala kahit isa. kasi po noon una libre daw ang kabila doon ko daw ilagay ang gamit din noon di ako nag agree sa gusto niya na sa kanya pangalan ilagay sa business permit eh noon di ako pumayag doon na po siningil na niya ako at di ko ngah makuha ang gamit kasi noong una 12k lang utang ko din noong nagkita kami ulit sa barangay naging 30k na. Din sinabi ko bakit yon lang nakasulat sabi niya wala akong mga gamit eh nakita po ng mga kapitbahay at yong naging cutomer ko sa parlor sila po nagpapatunay. At pababayaran niya sa akin ang 30k pero kung ano lang sinulat nya ay yon lang makuha ko. Hindi naman tama yon magbayad ako ng 30k tapos ang ibang gamit lalo na ang pagkakitaan ko na pangparlor ay hindi niya ibigay.
    Pinasok po niya ang inuupahan ko na wala ako at pinadlock na walang pasabi man lang. Ano po ang maikakaso ko sa kanya kung sakali magdemanda ako at may laban po ba ako sa gagawin kung pagsampa. Please i need help.

    Reply
  127. hi jay!

    i just want to ask some few question, we have this landlady here in quezon city, we rented it for only a month (transient) since were just going to process our papers going abroad.. she has an advertisement in website stated that transient room for rent with aircon, (which i thot na kasama na sa rental fee) as far as i know and as far as there is an existing contract, it is a residential house for rent and she’s asking us to pay the monthly electricity for commercial rent which is 15.00 per kilo watt hr., na wala sa contract at iniinsist nya na cnbi nya yon verbaly,. sobrng daming hidden charges including sa wifi na 500 na lagi nyang pinapatay..please help..thank you

    Reply
  128. hi jay,
    i went through this rent laws and alas i ran through yours and i appreciate how helpful you could be. thanks much. i want to ask something because i wanted to know if my lessor could just increase the rent of the condo unit i’m staying on a yearly basis to a 10% as stated in the contract. i rented the unit beginning april 2007 at 14,000 per month. now, i am renting the place at 17,000 per month and upon renewal this coming april, it’s suggesting an increase again. i would like to write the lessor a letter if he could just not increase this year but i want to attach some legal basis to it. Also, there are some major repairs to be done in my unit and left undone to this date. is there something i could indicate in my letter about this. please, send me your reply at niue_10@yahoo.com if it’s not much to ask. i don’t know how to follow you on this site, i’m not much of a techie. thank you so much and more power.

    Reply
  129. I would like to ask if we are going to transfer to another boarding house and we ask the owner to get back the 1 month advance we had paid yet we have no agreement, can we still have our money back?

    We had paid the 2 months advance and we decided to transfer on the following month prior to the deadline, can we have still rights to get our money back?

    Reply
  130. hi..what if the the lessor needs his property for their family purposes,and we are renting it for almost 8 years and paying it without delay..how long can be given to us to stay in that property?

    Reply
  131. Is there a law that protects tenants from Landlords who insists that the tenants have to repaint the entire apartment before they move out.

    We, the tenants have been renting at this apartment for a few years. The paint over time has gotten old and there are some marks from the sofa that is against it.

    Reply
  132. Hi, I am currently renting an apartment in the Metromanila area. According to the rent control act, it states that the yearly 7% restriction on rent increase is only applicable to housing that is below the TEN THOUSAND. My current rent is 12000/month.

    My landlord is seeking to increase it by 15% when the contract ends this December. Are there any laws that prevents such drastic increases?

    Please advice.

    Reply
  133. my landlord just write on a piece of paper stating that she reeived from me a certain amount as my monthly rentals on her apartment.is it legal?

    Reply
  134. dear jay,

    i am renting an apartment rowhouse here in cavite for 6 months now. i received an sms from the owner that she has found a buyer of the house and inform me that the place should be vacated. i am asking her if we could extend our rent until the end of the year, but she told me that i need to pay again a one month deposit and advance so i can retain the house. i’ve paid her a one month advance and deposit payment of 5,000 pesos. is it in the housing law that i should give another 5,000 pesos as an advance and deposit again? please help. she doesnt give an O.R. for every monthly payment. is it legal?

    yours trully,

    alecks

    Reply
  135. Im renting a 11,000 pesos monthly apartment. Correct me if im wrong, so I assume im excluded of this ACT.

    QUESTION: does it mean that the lessor can increase my rent for more than 7% annually?

    Since this ACT covers only for residential rents of upto 10,000 pesos.

    Please advise

    Thank you

    Reply
    • Hi Nina, as far as I know, free for all ang commercial spaces. In my opinion, hindi rin naman basta basta pwede mag taas ng rent kahit commercial space kasi yung tenent pwedeng lumipat sa mas reasonable na space, provided ideal din yung lilipatan, at siyempre hindi naman basta basta pwedeng lumipat, pwede lang yan pag mag expire na ang lease contract.

      Reply
  136. Salamat po sa pag post ng mahalagang impormasyon na ito. Nais ko lang po sanang magtananong na kung wala po bang Permit to Operate ang tinitirhan namin na boarding house. Ano po ba ang mga legal na hakbang na pwede naming gawin ? Gusto ko lang po na makasiguro kung sa B.I.R ba dapat kami sumangguni o sa anong ahensya ba ng gobyerno kami dapat pumunta ?

    Reply
  137. Hello po.
    Ano po ba ang legal “expiry of lease contract” kung wala pong contract in place? Considered “open-ended” po ba ito? Monthly? O Yearly?
    Salamat po in-advance sa sasagot nito.
    Rea

    Reply
  138. hi poe..
    meron poe ako problema tungkol poe sa inupahan naming bahay, bayad naman poe kmi lagi sknya ng renta poe namin pero lagi poe kmi advance… eto pong last payment namin advance poe ako ng 2 months deposit…. simula poe nag march 20 poe… tapos ngayong may 20 poe sinabihan poe kmi n umalis n poe kmi ng katapusan ng june.. kasi daw poe sisirain n poe nila ung bahay.. at gagawing garahe.. tapos poe sabi ko poe sa landlady poe namin na hindi ko na lng poe aantayin ung june katapusan at lilipat n poe kmi agad… gus2 ko poe makuha ung kabuuan ng pera na diniposito ko poe.. kasi poe hindi ko pa poe nagagamit ung 2 buwang advance ko poe.. pero sabi ko poe sa kanila akom poe ang magbabayad ng bills.. para ala poe sila problema.. tapos ngayon poe ehh ayaw nila ibigay skin ung pera na kinukuha ko poe.. at pinagbabayad pa poe kmi ng pag stay namin sa bahay nag ilang araw bago kmi lumipat.. ano poe ang dapat ko poeng gawin d2??.. paki advaise naman poe ako.. tungkol d2 poe isuue n ito.. tnx poe at more power…

    jenniffer…

    Reply
  139. hi jay,

    Hi! I have a problem regarding on my boarding house here in malibay. I want to used my 1month deposit because i am leaving the country but the problem is our land lady told me that the 1month deposit is not refundable and non consumable i was shocked when she told me. she gave me a receipt before indicating that the 1month advance is consumable and non refundable and the 1month deposit is not refundable and non consumable, it was a misunderstanding because i thought that the 1month deposit is refundable and consumable becasue that’s the usual. . Do I have legal claim on my problem? Can my land lady agree to consume my 1month deposit? we don’t we any contract except the receipt she gave me.

    Reply
  140. HI,

    NEED AN ADV FOR MY CONCERN…. MY LANDLADY GAVE ME A NOTIFICATION THAT I HAVE TO LEAVE THE PREMISES BY JULY 30,2010….. THE “CONTRACT” ENDS BY THEN. I ALREADY USED MY ADVANCE ON RENTAL BEC RECENTLY I AM HAVING A HARDTIME ON MY FINANCIALS DUE TO SICKNESS… I BELIEVE THAT I HAVENT USED MY DEPOSIT FOR A MONTH BUT SHE SAYS THAT I ALREADY DID…. SHE’S NOT GIVING ME AN OR THAT’S WHY I DONT HAVE ANY PROOF OF THAT…. MY CONCERN IS THAT IT IS ALSO USED FOR BUSINESS (INTERNET SHOP) AND ITS NOT EASY TO VACATE AND SET-UP TO ANOTHER PLACE SINCE I DONT HAVE THE RESOURCES AS OF THE MOMENT… THANKS

    Reply
    • 1st, you are wrong about NOT asking for OR for each payment, thus, you will never prove anything

      2nd, you can just play hardball if you have the upperhand and your stomach can take it. what im trying to say is if the owner cant cut your electric and water line, you can stay up to 3 months by just telling her u cant pay. but be sure that you are ready by the 3rd month. Well, that is just one part of the story. Your guts must be able to take the harassment they will bring you, may it be mental or physical

      Reply
  141. Hi,

    I hope you can help me with this..
    In the last sentence of Section 9, (c) , prohibiting the owner to lease the unit to a third party (not relatives right?) for 1 year, is it effective automatically? If we go to the barangay for example, or does it need to have a court order issued for it to be effective?

    Thanks.

    Reply
    • Hi Jamilla,
      To my opinion, Sec 9 protects the tenant against unlawful act of the Lessor and it is effective immediately. No court order is needed. Without Sec 9, Lessors can freely eject tenants and “re-rent” to a new Lessee for higher amount.
      Hope this helps. 🙂

      Reply
  142. The only update on the rental law is the 2009 RENTAL LAW and it states that rentals can increase at no more than 7 percent per year.

    Reply
  143. Hi Jay. I just want to know if there is a new rental law for 2010 about increasing the rent for 15%. Because are landlady was asking for a 15% increase to our rent. Thanks.

    Reply
    • Hi rosita,

      The 2009 rent law is valid until Dec 31, 2013, so all the provisions therein shall remain so until the expiration date. However, please bear in mind that the law covers residential lease with monthly rent of not more than p10,000 (in NCR and HUC) and not more than P5,000 in other areas. So if your monthly rental is more than the ceiling provided, then your lease contract is not covered by this law. =)

      Reply
  144. HI I WOULD LIKE TO INQUIRE IF THE LANDLORDS FOR A LEASED PROPERTY WERE REQUIRED FOR THE FOLLOWINGS:

    1.PERMIT TO OPERATE LEASSING BUSSINESS
    2.REGISTRATION WITH BIR
    3.ISSUANCE OF OFFICIAL RECEIPT
    4.CERTIFICATE FROM BUREAU OF FIRE PROTECTION(BASED ON FIRE PROTECTION CODE)

    IF, YES, IS THERE ANY LEGAL RIGHTS A TENANT HAVE, TO DEMAND THEIR LANDLORD TO PROVIDE THE NECESSARY DOCUMENT FOR SUCH BUSINESS?

    Reply
  145. I have a tenant in my apartment whose contract is until December 31, 2010. Recently, she had issues on the water bill and she started calling me names and scandalized me in our apartment building. Is there any ground where I can cancel the contract? It’s giving me sleepless nights and stress on what she’s doing.

    Help.

    Reply
  146. Hi,

    First of all, thank you for this reference. I would like to ask for your opinion regarding our landlady. She owns a three-storey apartment type building with six units and we are renting one of her 2-bdrm units for almost two years now. Our rental fee ever since was Php10,000. Now, just the other day, Mar 2, she sent us a “Notice of Increase”. She stated in that notice that she is increasing our monthly rental fee from Php10,000 to Php12,500 effective our next payment, Mar 6, which was just 3 days from the time the notice was received. Our contract will expire on May but she wants it effective ASAP. She also said she really wants to increase the rent to 12,500 which is why she is she is already informing us ahead of time. To top that, she also said that if we will renew, then the new rate will be 12,500 but if we will not renew, then she will push thru with the 25% increase effective Mar 6. Now, i just want to make sure if i really have the right to decline that increase up until we finish our contract on May, whether or not we renew. Thank you very much, God Bless!

    Reply
    • if you have a contract, my opinion is that she can’t increase mid-way. only on contract renewal may she increase the rent by 7% max. please consult a lawyer to make sure.

      Reply
    • Hi Marga,

      SEC. 5 of Republic Act No. 9653 states that 1.00 to 10,000.00 monthly rental is covered by this act.

      First, 10T monthly rental is covered by RA 9563 (see SEC 5.)
      Second, Rental increase should not be more than 7% (see SEC 4.) So the 2500 increase is 18% MORE than what is lawfully allowed.

      However, RA 9563 does not clearly state how soon can a Lessor effect the increase after advice (written or verbal?).

      Reply
  147. Hi,
    I need advise on my case. My contact expired on Jan 8, 2010. I didnt realize that this RA 9653 exists. I just signed the new contract. Since 2006 our rent is being increased 10% annually. It was 5000 initially and for 2009 it was 6050 and now the new contract says 6655 and also the water and electicall bill they add more than 100% from the actuall cost. I am renting a studio type room here in cebu city. After signing the contract does this mean I am not entitled to this RA? or does the owner needs to do something on this. If not can i file something. I know the owner has a lot of connection since he is the owner of Indiana Aerospace University and a good ally of Sen Enrile.

    Please advise.

    thanks

    Reply
    • the law stipulates that lessors may only raise the rent a maximum of 7% annually for the same lessee. you may consult a lawyer to find out what your options are.

      Reply
      • Hi William,
        Remember that “ignorance of the law is not an excuse for punishment”. It is the Lessor’s responsibility to know and search about rental acts or laws. And no one is above the law 🙂

        Reply
  148. hi Jay,

    We are renting a house/computershop for barely 16 months now. our formal contract expired last August 2009 although verbal agreement still holds true and payments being made. Just recently, the owner inform us that we need to vacant the premise by July 2010, do i get any extra “free” months aside from my 1 month advance and 2 months deposit? i heard that i can avail a 4 months free of charge if the owner is force evicting due to personal reasons.

    Reply
    • please correct me if i’m wrong, but since you no longer have a contract, i believe the lessor need only to inform you at least 30 days in advance. it doesn’t matter what his reasons are. i have never heard of this 4 months free of charge if the owner if force evicting you.

      Reply
      • Hi Ryan,

        SEC. 9.(b), of Republic Act No. 9653 covers the ejectment reasons/conditions. First, it must be made clear to you WHY you are being asked to vacate the leased premise. That it, (1) Sub-lease (2) late payments (3) repossession (4) major repair. However, still subject to conditions.

        The RA does not mention anything about “four months” free on forceful eviction. 

        You are entitled to three months advance notice if your Lessor has justifiable reason for your eviction.

        Reply
        • > “First, it must be made clear to you WHY you are being asked to vacate the leased premise.”

          I looked but cannot find any mandate requiring any landlord to make clear to a tenant why he is being told to leave.

          > “You are entitled to three months advance notice if your Lessor has justifiable reason for your eviction.”

          That’s not what the law says. The law clearly does NOT mandate any minimum advance notice from a landlord to a tenant EXCEPT in the case of
          “(c) Legitimate need of the owner/lessor to repossess his or her property for
          his or her own use or for the use of any immediate member of his or her
          family as a residential unit”, but then is confusedly requires that the contract must also be expired. Why should it be expired?

          Since Ryan’s contract is expired his landlord can demand that he vacate, and needs give no reason, nor is there a mandatory minimal advance notice required under that subsection (e).

          Subsection (c) and (e) are worded such that the mandates of subsection (c) apply ONLY if the landlord cites ‘personal use’ as the reason for ejectment.

          If the landlord cites only ‘expiration of contract’ as the reason for ejectment, then subsection (c) applies and so no advance notice or other provisions are required.

          The confusion caused by this strange wording of these two sections serve to demonstrate that the legislators did not possess clear thinking on the topic of Judicial Ejectment; it was not well thought out by them.

          Considering the slowness and inefficiency of the court system here, mandating that Judicial Ejectment requires that the tenant first be “arrears in payment of rent for a total of three (3) months” is ludicrous and harmful to landlords, because it allows tenants to abuse landlords by not paying rents for three months PLUS the time it takes to fight your way past the useless barangay system in hopes of getting your case into a court, then they simply abandon the apartment in the middle of the night, just to repeat the swindle on another unsuspecting landlord.

          In the provinces we landlords loose a LOT of income to government-protected deadbeats because of this three-month rule, and THE GOVERNMENT LOOSES A LOT OF TAX REVENUE NATIONWIDE because of their bad rent control laws which protect deadbeats, just because certain provisions were not well thought out before being hurriedly implemented.

          Time is of the essence in both collecting rents and in prosecuting deadbeats, and so the 3-month requirement before going to court provision needs be repealed.

          Reply
          • hi my name is michelle.. i just wanna ask about my current situation wih the home owner..i am renting a studio type in novaliches and wasnt able to pay my last month rental due to financual crisis coz u dont have work ,and i went to pampanga to ask some money from my family but unfortunately theyvwere not able to help me,so i txted the owner and tild her that ill be paying my rental as soon as i get back from work, but no response from the owner..now after a month still wasn tt able to go back from the house.and my neighborr told me that theybpadlock the house and they took all my stuff without informing me… what can i do to get my stuff back and can i complain frombhe barangay qbout my case??? Pleas help me…

            Reply
    • Since your written contract has expired, This part applies:

      SEC. 9. Grounds for Judicial Ejectment. – Ejectment shall be allowed on the following grounds:
      (e) Expiration of the period of the lease contract.

      With an expired contract it is clear from this that your landlord can demand you vacate at any time.

      Reply
      • when a landlord locked or put a padlock to your room then it is illegal without due process of law. there must be written agreement or letter given to you. only the court can allow the policemen for the sheriff

        Reply
  149. Hi Jay, I have problem of my tenant, She do things in my premises without informing me like concreting my backyard and ask me the 50% share of cost, kill my plants by cuting it, remove the plywood division and the worst thing is cut those 2 big trees in my front yard which i care for 9 years..Then Her rent always late and sometimes luck but pay it to the next month.
    We have no written contract or no O.R. of her payment coz i didnot issue,No proof that she rent my houase, is the 3 months notice to vacate is applicable to me? We only agre a short term lease or month to month basis verbally. THank hope you advise me

    Reply
  150. Hi! Has the IRR of the above been released? My contract is due to expire next month and I want to make sure whether the 7% increase limit will be applicable when I renew my contract. Thanks.

    Reply
  151. hi. Thanks for the info on the Rent Control law. I have question though. My tenant”sontract have already expired. Rental amount is below ten thousand pesos. I also have another tenant whose rental amount is ten thousand pesos but if paid within the first 7 days of the month a discount of five hundred pesos is given. Do I fall under the rent control law? I would like to increase their rent already. When can I increase and upto how many percent.? Will wait for your reply. Thanks

    Reply
    • Hi Ping, my opinion is your second tenant’s contract with you would fall under the rent control law if your contract indicates a monthly rent of 10K. If it were the other way around (monthly rent is 9.5K with penalty of 500pesos if payment is made after the first 7 days of the month, then I guess it would not be covered. I hope this makes sense. 🙂

      Reply
  152. hi jay ! a lessee has not paid his rent since oct 15,2009 . he has no deposit left. i have given him notice to vacate by oct 30 but he’s refused to do so. at the barangay hearing he said he will vacate by nov. 30 but when asked for rental only says he has no money. what should i do so i can evict him lawfully. thx

    Reply
    • Hi Tuesday, how about his 1 month advance? I suppose you can consume that. By the way, do you have a lease contract with him? I also notice your tenant has only has failed to pay 1 month of rent. Based on the law, one ground for ejection is as follows:

      (b) Arrears in payment of rent for a total of three (3) months: Provided, That in the case of refusal by the lessor to accept payment of the rent agreed upon, the lessee may either deposit, by way of consignation, the amount in court, or with the city or municipal treasurer, as the case may be, or barangay chairman, or in a bank in the name of and with notice to the lessor, within one (1) month after the refusal of the lessor to accept payment. The lessee shall thereafter deposit the rent within ten (10) days of every current month. Failure to deposit the rent for three (3) months shall constitute a ground for ejectment. The lessor, upon authority of the court in case of consignation or upon joint affidavit by him and the lessee to be submitted to the city or municipal treasurer or barangay chairman and to the bank where deposit was made, shall be allowed to withdraw the deposits;

      Reply
      • so in effect, the law provided that lessors ask for 1 month advance and 2 months deposit to cover the 3 months non-payment before eviction… if the lessee were to damage property or not pay electricity/water, etc., the lessor is left with the shorter end of the stick. that’s a bit unfortunate…

        Reply
        • Hi Jon,
          To my opinion, RA 9563 does not clearly state if the consumption of the 2mo+1mo payment should be included in the computation of late payment. So, therefore, in the case of late payment the computation could start BEFORE or AFTER the consumption of the 2mo+1mo payment.
          Hope this flaw is clarified soon. What do you think Mr Jay Castillo?

          Reply
          • That’s exactly the same predicament i have..and now my landlord wants me to leave at once,harassing me day and night through text.said i dont have the right to stay anymore as ive consumed the last of my deposit last july 15. thru the barangay, i didnt promise a certain date as to when i will be transferring..but i gave the assurance that i will leave as soon as i’ve found another house to transfer to and the means ofcourse.I was told, they’d file me a case for whatever, trespassing, overstaying, deprivation of their rights as property owners etc…their demand to vacate notice dated aug 5 and received on aug 6 shld commence the effectivity of their notice. but they are forcing me to leave until the 14th of august…i am firm with my commitment to leave soon but situation does not allow me yet…as its not easy to locate one.they dont have a license to operate business and said their property was a residential unit attached next to their house…but the mere fact that i paid monthly rental with bank receipt and written acknowledgement rcpt was enough proof of their act….what should i do now?they irritate me and belittle me and does not listen to what i say….???? pls advise

            Reply
  153. Hi! I have a problem regarding on my boarding house here in sampaloc. I want to transfer to different boarding house that is near to our school but the problem is our land lady didn’t want to give my deposit(refund) i can’t consume it because of time. I spend a lot of money if I were there. Do I have legal claim on my problem? Can my land lady refund my deposit?

    Reply
    • Hi Cristian, I believe it depends on the lease contract you have. If it says that that your deposit is not refundable in case you pre-terminate your contract, then you are not entitled to a refund for your deposit. May I know what’s written on the lease contract with regards to pre-termination?

      Reply
  154. Hi, Jay! I just need advise. Do we have law which mandates that “all enhancements, repairs and upgrade made by a lessee in his rented apartment can be deducted from his monthly rent”? For instance, I would like to have my own water meter but the owner of the apartment does not want to deduct the expense from my monthly rent. Also, I spent more than P 5,000.00 in re-painting the whole unit and the owner did not even share any in the cost. Do I have legal claim on these?

    Reply
    • Hi Macy, I believe there is no law which mandates this but I suppose it can be incorporated into the lease contract. I guess the best way to avoid misunderstandings between a tenant and a landlord would be to ensure that they reach an agreement as to how costs related to improvements are handled prior to the introduction of the improvements, aside from having these included in the lease contract.

      Reply
  155. good am!!what if we dont have a contract, and the lessor is already ejecting us. we only stayed in the place for only 1 month and they are already ejecting us,coz one of their relatives will used the premises. we dont have any arrears and we dont pay the 2 mos deposit because they dont pay the arrears in meralco and the water bill. we paid the advance payment. please advice us and thank you very much.

    Reply
  156. Hello,

    First off I would just like to thank you for posting the full text. I’ve been going off of newspaper highlights and they always left me with questions.

    I do however have one question I would like to clarify. I’m curious as to whether this law applies to rent increases that were made in between January 1, 2009 to July 14, 2009. I’m assuming that there are no implications as the law was pretty “non-existent” at the time, but I keep seeing/hearing contradictory statements about this. Your opinion/response would be much appreciated.

    Thanks in advance.

    Seth

    Reply
    • Hi Seth, you’re welcome! In my opinion the new law should not apply for that period as it really was not yet in effect. I really hope they can come out with this law’s implementing rules and regulations so that we’ll have clear and definite answers for this and other questions that have been asked due to the passage of the law.

      Reply
  157. Thank you for this update Jay, I am grateful for your site, it is indeed a lot of help since I do not have to go through each banks online asset page, it is fast, reliable.

    I would like to establish a back link to your site with my blog which is also about pinoy business coaching which I believe can also help bustling real estate investors grow their business through sound principles.

    Here is the address
    http://pinoybusinesscoach.blogspot.com

    Thanks and more power to you!

    Reply
  158. Hi Jay,

    I have been reading your site for quite some time now. It is very informative and I am more convinced now than after reading ThinkRich Pinoy-Quick. But I fully understand that after reading you blog site and books I still have a lot to learn about real estate.

    After going through a list of foreclosed properties I have now prospect properties that I want to invest. Problem is I do not know what to do next… Do you know if some individual/group giving seminars on quick run through about in-and-out’s in real estate investment. I am concerened about the legallity of my transactions and also have an idea on costs that I might incur during the process. I might also want to be a licensed broker that may enhance may credibility as a seller/buyer.

    Thanks in advance.
    I fully appreciate your help through this blog. I pray that this may be the turning point towards to my financial freedom.
    God Bless And More Power!!!

    Reply
    • Hi Jay-R,

      You sound just like me after I attended the Think Rich Pinoy seminar last August 2007. =)

      I understand your concern about the legalities and the associated costs with real estate investing, I’ve been there! In my case, I reviewed for the broker’s seminar and learned just about everything I needed to learn. Since the brokers exam and review seminars are currently in limbo because of the RESA law, the seminar of Engineer Cruz comes to mind. However, the topic about investing in real estate was already covered last August 12, 2009. You can get a complete list of remaining topics at http://urban-institute.blogspot.com/. I’ll be attending the following topics:
      Day 6, September 16 PROPERTY VALUATION: HOW TO DO IT YOURSELF
      Day 7, September 23 HOW TO START & MANAGE A SUCCESSFUL REALTY OFFICE
      and probably Day 9, October 7 REAL ESTATE FINANCE AND INVESTMENT ANALYSIS
      If you’re attending, I’ll see you there!

      Good luck and God Bless!

      Reply
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