The Rental Housing Amendment Act is the latest amendment to the Rental Housing Act (No 50 of 1999. The Amendment Act introduces various changes that will impact on the relationship between tenants and landlords. It also changes the term “Landlord” to the gender-neutral “Landowner”.

It is important to note that even though the Act has been signed, the commencement date has not yet been announced which means the provisions are not effective yet. It is important to be aware of the provisions in the Amendment Act because a landlord will be given six months from the commencement date to ensure that their lease agreements conform to the Amendment Act. 

The main provisions of the Amendment Act are: 

• Lease agreements between the landlord and the tenant must be in writing and legally enforceable
• All sections of the lease and any explanations and definitions it contains will need to be explained to the tenants and understood before the document is signed
• It is the landlord’s responsibility to ensure that the rental property is in a habitable state, which is in line with the existing Rental Housing Act.
• The landlord will be responsible for maintaining the rental property and will have to ensure that it has access to basic services such as water and electricity
• Only the local authority will be permitted to cut off services to non-paying tenants
• No tenant may be prevented from entering the rental property or denied access to the rental property without a court order
• A joint inspection by the landlord and tenant has to be done at the commencement of the lease period, and if the landlord does not participate in this inspection, no part of the tenant’s deposit for repairs or damages may be withheld when the tenant leaves
• A defect list will have to form part of the lease agreement as an annexure
• When the deposit is paid back to the tenant, the interest earned on that deposit must also be paid to the tenant within seven days of the expiration of the lease, subject to any deductions for damages

The Act creates new offences if you are a landlord that may result in imprisonment of the landlord or a fine.  If you are a landlord and you: 

• Do not provide your tenant with a written lease agreement
• Fail to repay your tenant’s deposit and interest;
• Cut the utilities to the dwelling e.g. electricity
• Lock your tenant out of the premises
• Provide your tenant with an uninhabitable dwelling, or 
• Fail to maintain the premises that you are leasing

then, you are guilty of an offence in terms of the Rental Housing Amendment Act.

Finally, the Act sets out landlord’s rights which include the right to:

• Prompt and regular payment of rental
• Recover unpaid rental, after obtaining a ruling by the tribunal or an order of a court
• Terminate the lease on grounds that do not constitute an unfair practice and are specified in the lease
• On termination of the lease for the tenant to vacate the dwelling and to receive the dwelling in a good state of repair, except for fair wear and tear

The Minister of Human Settlements is required to publish a simple lease agreement in all official South African languages and has a duty to set up Housing Tribunals in all provinces.