Does the housing association require me to sign a new contract?

Questioner

Can my housing association require me to sign a new contract if my housemate has unilaterally terminated the lease to terminate our joint contract? I currently live with my sister. She is going to live together and because of this she has unilaterally terminated the lease, because I want to continue living in the apartment. With my salary I am 50 euros short to be allowed to rent it myself according to the standard. So I would like to live together with a new roommate. However, I want to do this according to the conditions that are now in my contract. With my current rent. I do not want a rent increase and I also do not want to be stuck with a yearly contract that I cannot get out of for a year, after all, I have been renting from them for 4 years and can now cancel my rent every month. Can they just force me to sign a new lease? With a rent increase and other obligations? After all, I did not cancel my part of the rent. It seems to me that this could be a contract amendment and not a new contract.

Lawyer

In the situation you describe, a number of legal considerations play a role. I will give you a general legal interpretation based on the information you have provided, but I would like to emphasize that advice from a specialized lawyer or attorney is advisable. In principle, a housing association cannot simply force you to sign a new lease. In your case, you had a joint contract with your sister, and she terminated her part. However, the lease is usually joint and several, which means that you are each fully responsible for fulfilling the contract. If one person terminates the contract, it therefore in principle makes a new contract necessary for the person who continues to live there, but not necessarily under new conditions. A rental contract is an agreement between two parties, and a housing association may not simply change the terms of an existing contract unilaterally. One point of attention is that you indicate that with your current salary you do not quite meet the rent according to the landlord's standard. This may result in the housing association not wanting to simply offer you the same contract. However, re-contracting with a possible new housemate requires separate consent from all parties, and in that context the housing association could try to stipulate other conditions. However, it is advisable to discuss these points with the housing association, and if necessary to consult a lawyer or attorney.' ---------------- Stichting Rechtswinkel.nl is a national organization with students and volunteers. The above advice is based on limited information and may be incomplete or even incorrect for your situation. Always consult a lawyer or attorney for your further steps. Read disclaimer: https://rechtswinkel.nl/disclaimer I would like to invite you to rate the above answer so that we can learn from your response.