Sometimes we hear about cases, typically, in connection with subleases, where the property is not vacated even after the termination of the lease agreement. With a failed vacation, the owner of the property is in a difficult situation, which may prevent him/her from letting out again or selling his/her property. Anyone who thinks ahead even for the worst-case scenarios and consults a lawyer or, in addition, a notary public, may avoid years of litigation. After all, in possession of the vacation statement, the unauthorized property user can be “evicted” from the property directly, even with the help of the police.
What is exactly the Vacation Statement?
In general, the vacation statement (or in other words eviction notice) is the unilateral declaration of the tenant of the apartment or business premises. In this case, the commitment refers to moving out of the property when the lease agreement – for any reason – is terminated. This is an additional guarantee for the landlord over and above the lease agreement.
However, it is also important to know that this declaration can be linked not only to lease. It can also be applied in sale and purchase transactions, if the entry into possession takes place first and the buyer pays the total purchase price only later. Thus, the vacation statement in this case gives the seller an extra guarantee. If the buyer does not pay the total purchase price, and thus the sale and purchase fails, and in this case the original condition must be restored and the buyer who has already moved in must move out, having the vacation statement the intermediate situation can be settled faster.
The other case regarding sale and purchase is when the seller lives in the property until he/she receives the total purchase price, because he/she uses it to finance the purchase price of his/her new apartment (where he/she will move). Thus, the buyer must be assured that the seller will move out at the given time (in particular: payment of the total purchase price by the buyer + X days) and that the buyer may take possession of the property.
In the case of sale and purchase transactions, the application of the vacation statement is rarer, because it is possible to give the parties adequate security with attorney-at-law escrows, for example, the consent to the registration of ownership is released only if the total purchase price is paid (document escrow). It is also a guarantee if the buyer deposits the purchase price into an attorney-at-law escrow, from which it is only released when the seller has moved out of the property and handed it over to the buyer (money escrow).
Why is it faster?
Because the deed prepared by notaries will be directly enforceable. This means that the landlord or the seller does not have to go to court if, due to the termination of the lease agreement or the failure of the sale and purchase agreement, he/she wants to regain possession of his/her property in a clean state that the tenant/buyer has abandoned and emptied of their movables. Anyone who thinks ahead even for the worst-case scenarios and consults a lawyer or, in addition, a notary public, may avoid years of litigation. In possession of the vacation statement, the unauthorized property user can be “evicted” from the property directly, even with the help of the police.
Hint: Lawyers drafting lease agreements and sale and purchase agreements usually already have a good professional relationship with specific notaries public (so they can recommend contacts), with whom they can agree in advance what exactly needs to be included in a notarial deed and can also send them the text of the basic contract. In this way, the client’s job is also easier, since the professional, more complicated part is handled by the lawyers with the notaries.
Preconditions
Based on the above, the vacation statement cannot stand alone. It always supposes a basic legal relationship: thus, it is necessary to conclude a lease agreement or sale and purchase agreement (or other contract) first. In the following, our article only mentions the vacation statement included in the lease agreements, but this can logically apply to contracts containing other legal transactions (e.g. sale and purchase) and, for example, to the vacation statement of the seller or the buyer.
Based on that, two types of solutions can be requested from the notary public in order to receive the vacation statement.
1. Incorporating the entire lease agreement into a notarial deed. In this case, the entire lease agreement is drafted by the notary public, signed by both the landlord and the tenant, and the bilateral legal transaction takes the form of a notarial deed (obviously, this entails higher notary fees).
This is the safest solution: all tenant obligations that can be found in the lease agreement are included in a public document. In this way, it is possible to request direct enforcement, for example, in the case of non-payment, the execution of a specific act, or moving out. Also, the burden of proof itself is different: it is more difficult to overturn a statement included in a notarial deed later if it is used in a procedure.
There are always two sides to a coin. With the full incorporation into a notarial deed, not only the tenant’s obligations are included in the public document: the landlord’s obligations, too. So this solution also protects the interests of tenants. It serves as an extra guarantee for them, as in specific cases the tenant may also request direct enforcement from the landlord. An example can be mentioned if, at the expiry of the lease, the landlord does not pay back the security deposit provided by the tenant. In such a case, the amount of the security deposit will be directly enforceable by the tenant against the landlord.
2. Including only the vacation statement part of the contract (or, for the sake of enforceability, the provisions leading to moving out: definitions, payment deadlines, contacts, notices and termination rules) in a public document – this is the more common case.
In this case, the parties conclude the lease agreement in a private document (most often and recommended with the assistance of an attorney-at-law), and based on the already existing lease relationship, the tenant confirms certain of his/her commitments in the lease agreement in a unilateral declaration.
The commitment can be made in two ways:
- On the basis of the lease agreement established in a private deed, the tenant only makes a notarized statement of the obligation to vacate the property. Thus, the landlord can request enforcement only to vacate and leave the property, if the lease agreement is terminated for any reason and the tenant does not move out of his/her own accord within the deadline provided for this.
- In addition to the eviction, the tenant also makes a declaration of commitment to pay the rent (possibly the common cost and utilities) – this means an even greater guarantee for the landlord, because in this way he/she can request direct enforcement even in case of non-payment of the rent (common costs, utilities). All these with one document (obviously, if the document is larger, it has a higher price according to the notaries’ fee schedule, given that the notaries’ fee is determined by law and the number of pages of the document and the language in which it is written are of great importance).
- On the basis of the lease agreement established in a private deed, the tenant only makes a notarized statement of the obligation to vacate the property. Thus, the landlord can request enforcement only to vacate and leave the property, if the lease agreement is terminated for any reason and the tenant does not move out of his/her own accord within the deadline provided for this.
Language and wording of the deed
The above documents can be prepared in a foreign language instead of Hungarian. As with attorney-at-laws, it is also common among notaries public to draft documents in a foreign language in addition to Hungarian. Thus, for example, during the lease transaction of a larger business premise, the part of the lease agreement prepared by the attorney-at-law in Hungarian-English containing the vacation statement is drafted directly in English by the acting notary for the tenant (tenant’s representative) who does not understand Hungarian but English. The language of the notarial deed will be also English, and if enforcement is requested due to a legal dispute, the client requires an authentic copy in Hungarian. This also saves time, money and energy.
Although it is mostly written in Hungarian for parties who speak and understand Hungarian language, the wording of the public document containing the vacation statement is usually difficult, as it is essential to include the legal references and mandatory elements that enable the case to go directly to the bailiff without going through litigation. When drafting a document, the notary public reads and explains the content and meaning of the document to the parties. If the party has questions, he/she may ask them. Of course, nothing should be signed until it is not obvious for the party what the document contains and the consequences of signing it.
This information is not comprehensive and does not constitute legal advice or an offer. Should you have any further legal questions or queries please contact us via our contact details (https://katonareka.hu/en/contact/).
This blog article was also published on the following websites with the same content in Hungarian language:
https://tudastar.ingatlan.com/tippek/amit-a-kikoltozesi-nyilatkozatrol-tudni-erdemes/
https://orac.hu/news_feed?orac_news_id=12848