Dear PAO,
I have a tenant who has failed to pay for three consecutive months. The rental fee is P5,000.00 per month.
He is ignoring my claims and refuses to talk to me. I already filed a
complaint before the Barangay but he never showed up during the
hearings. What should I do?
Zarina
Dear Zarina,
What exists
between you and your tenant is a contract of lease. Pursuant to Article
1654 of the New Civil Code of the Philippines, you are obliged to: (1)
deliver the thing which is the object of your contract in such a
condition as to render it fit for the use intended; (2) make all the
necessary repairs, during the subsistence of your contract, in order to
keep it suitable for the use to which it has been devoted, unless there
is a stipulation to the contrary; and (3) maintain the lessee in the
peaceful and adequate enjoyment of the thing leased for the entire
duration of your contract. On the part of your tenant, he is obliged,
among others, to pay the price of the lease according to the terms the
two of you have agreed on (Article 1657 (1), id).
Accordingly, we
submit that you have the right to claim from your tenant the payment of
his rental arrears. However, your legal claims must first be threshed
out before the Barangay since, as you have mentioned in your letter, you
have filed your claims therein. It is worth emphasizing that our
regular courts will not take cognizance of any existing claim which is
well within the jurisdiction of the Barangay.
Nevertheless, you
may seek for the issuance of a certificate to file action from your
Barangay Chairman. Such recourse is available if the obligee, the lessee
as in this case, continues to avoid attending the hearings before the
Barangay, making amicable settlement unattainable. Thereafter, you may
proceed with filing an action for ejectment against your lessee. As
provided for under Section 9 of Republic Act No. 9653, otherwise known
as the Rent Control Act of 2009, “Ejectment shall be allowed on the
following grounds: x x x (b) Arrears in payment of rent for a total of
three months: x x x” You may also ask for the payment of the amount
which your lessee owes you, as well as damages, if you have incurred
any.
We hope that we were able to answer your queries. Please be
reminded that this advice is based solely on the facts you have narrated
and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts
are changed or elaborated.
source: Manila Times' Column by
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