If the Landlord Sells the Property, Must the Tenant Move out?

【Legal English Series 7：If the landlord sells the property, must the tenant move out?】

Hey guys! Are you ready to embrace the nourishment of knowledge? Welcome back to our Legal English Series!😘

Today, we reach the last chapter of our exploration into lease law essentials. We'll tackle the ultimate fear of many tenants: "If the landlord sells the property, must the tenant move out?"

This issue relates to Article 425 of the Civil Code, also known as “the principle of preserving the lease despite the sale,” which states: “A lease continues to exist to the transferee notwithstanding the lessor transfers the ownership of the thing leased to a third party after the lessor delivered the thing leased and the lessee has possessed such thing.

The provisions of preceding paragraph shall not apply to a lease of real property without notarizing, the period exceeding five years or an indefinite period.”

In other words, in principle, the new property owner and the original tenant should maintain the lease relationship, with only the lessor changing to the new property owner. Furthermore, all other lease conditions, such as rent, lease term, and other rights and obligations, shall remain according to the original lease agreement. However, this rule does not apply to two scenarios: leases of real property without notarization exceeding five years or leases with an indefinite term. Even if the property is sold and the new owner does not wish to continue leasing, seeking to reclaim the property, the tenant cannot oppose the new owner with the principle of preserving the lease despite the sale.

In practical cases, due to the legal restriction of the lease surviving the sale, landlords find it relatively challenging to sell their properties. Hence, landlords often request the termination of the lease and ask tenants to vacate. If faced with such a situation, tenants may not only insist on maintaining the lease relationship but also consider negotiating with the landlord to have them bear the breach compensation before terminating the lease and seeking alternative housing arrangements!

Through these weeks of learning, I believe you've become quite the rental knowledge expert! 💯👍 I hope this legal know-how can serve as your reliable backup, helping you safeguard your rights. Next, we'll continue introducing more legal issues you might encounter in your daily life. Remember to tune in every Thursday night!