The term " furnished residential lease" refers to the letting of furnished accommodation that is the tenant's principal residence.
Before examining the duration of a furnished residential lease, it should be remembered that to benefit from this status, which is less restrictive than an unfurnished residential lease, two elements must be met. Firstly, the parties must jointly intend to enter into a furnished tenancy and secondly, the property must be sufficiently furnished. In the absence of either of these two elements, the courts will reclassify the contract as an unfurnished lease, with all the obligations and duties that this entails.
While common intent is not a real problem, the concept of furnished accommodation is.
The property must be sufficiently furnished to be let under a furnished lease. According to case law, the presence of sufficient furniture must enable the tenant to live in a suitable way. To qualify for a furnished lease, the accommodation must include a table, bed, fitted kitchen and kitchen utensils.
An inventory of the furniture must be attached to the furnished residential lease. Failure to do so may result in the lease being reclassified as an unfurnished lease.
Legal duration of a furnished residential lease
A furnished residential lease for a principal residence must be concluded for a minimum period of one year. Although this is much less restrictive than an unfurnished lease, particularly in view of the shorter duration, landlords may be tempted to enter into a furnished lease fraudulently. This will be the case in particular if the property is unfurnished, or not furnished to a sufficient standard to enable the tenant to live there properly.
At the end of the term, the furnished residential lease is tacitly renewed for a further year.
Exceptions to the minimum duration of a furnished residential lease
The principle of a one-year term for all furnished residential leases for use as a principal residence may be qualified in certain situations.
For example, a lessor who has a commercial lease that is about to expire may enter into a furnished lease for a period of less than one year. The same applies if the lessor has already planned to cease trading. In both these cases, the furnished residential lease must mention the events and the reasons that justify this departure from the legal time limit.
On the other hand, if the events initially provided for in the contract do not occur, the term of the furnished residential lease is automatically extended to one year.
In addition, a furnished residential lease granted to a student may be for only nine months. However, in this case, the student will not benefit from the tacit renewal clause provided for by law, unless the parties agree otherwise.
Termination of a furnished residential lease
The tenant may terminate the furnished residential lease at any time by giving one month's notice.
If the landlord does not wish to renew the furnished residential lease, he must give the tenant at least three months' notice before the lease expires. The landlord must also give reasons for refusing to renew the furnished residential lease. There are three grounds for refusing to renew: repossession of the property, sale of the property or the existence of a legitimate and serious reason, in particular a failure by the tenant to fulfil his obligations.
In the event of repossession, the lessor must indicate the name and address of the beneficiary of the repossession, who can only be the lessor, the lessor's spouse, the partner to whom the lessor is bound by a civil solidarity pact registered on the date of the notice, the lessor's cohabiting partner who has been notorious for at least one year on the date of the notice, the lessor's ascendants, descendants or those of the lessor's spouse, partner or cohabiting partner.
Whether the lease is furnished or unfurnished, the law and the courts tend to protect the tenant at the expense of the law of obligations. For example, it is forbidden to evict a tenant between 1 November and 31 March, and the judge may grant additional time.