Renting a home in Malta: leases, notices, deposits, bills and repairs

For a tenant in Malta charged a higher water and electricity tariff because the landlord has not declared the people living in the property. The letter asks the landlord, under article 17 of the Private Residential Leases Act, to acknowledge the number of residents for the correct tariff and to give you access to the account, and claims back the extra you paid, which the Act lets you keep back from the rent. It can also say that a fixed utility charge in the lease has no effect. Send it by registered letter and keep the receipt.

For a tenant in Malta who wants to leave a rented home. You choose the ground — withdrawal after the minimum period, leaving at the end of the term, withdrawal after a renewal by law, a short lease, or leaving early — and give the date; a saving clause moves the date to the earliest one the Private Residential Leases Act allows if needed. It asks for the handover and the return of the deposit and gives your new address. The Act requires a registered letter: send it so, in time, and keep the post office receipt.

For a landlord and tenant in Malta letting a home as the tenant's primary residence for one year or more. The lease sets out everything article 6 of the Private Residential Leases Act requires — the property, its use, the period, renewal, the rent and how it is paid, the deposit — with the inventory attached, and states the Act's rules on notice, withdrawal, yearly increases, water and electricity, repairs and registration. Both sign; the landlord registers it online with the Housing Authority within 30 days.

For a landlord in Malta whose lease provides for a yearly rent increase. The notice to the tenant names the clause that allows it, the current and new rent, the date the new rent applies and the Property Price Index figure used, and states the limits of article 14 of the Private Residential Leases Act: once a year, never in the first year, no more than the index's annual variation and never over 5%. Send it by registered letter and keep the post office receipt.

For a landlord and tenant in Malta signing a private residential lease. It records the condition of each room and of the furniture and appliances the landlord supplies, the meter readings and the keys, and lists the numbered photographs with a short description of each, as article 6 of the Private Residential Leases Act requires — even for an unfurnished home. All parties sign it and keep a copy; it is attached to the lease, and the deposit is measured against it when the lease ends.

For a landlord and tenant in Malta at the end of a lease, when the keys are handed back. It records the keys returned, the final meter readings, the condition of each room compared with the inventory signed at the start, any damage the landlord points out with the tenant's comments, what is agreed about the deposit, and the tenant's new address. Both sign it on the day and each keeps a copy; signing does not mean accepting a deduction not written in it.

For a tenant in Malta whose landlord has not registered the lease with the Housing Authority. The letter reminds the landlord that the Private Residential Leases Act requires registration online within 30 days of the start, asks for it within seven days with confirmation, and says that otherwise you will register the lease yourself at the landlord's expense and keep back part of the rent to recover the fee, as article 4(4) allows. Send it by registered letter and keep the post office receipt.

For a tenant in Malta who has moved out and is still waiting for the deposit. The letter to the landlord gives the date the lease ended and the date the keys were handed back, asks for the deposit within 14 days or a written list of any deduction with the reason and evidence for each, and says which deductions you dispute. The next step it names is the Adjudicating Panel for Private Residential Leases, for claims up to €5,000 on a registered lease. Send it by registered letter and keep the post office receipt.

For a landlord in Malta who does not want a long private residential lease to renew. The notice tells the tenant that the lease ends on the last day of its current term, and states the tenant's protections: it must be sent by registered letter at least three months before that day, or the lease renews by law for a year; it cannot end the lease earlier; and it is not an eviction. Not for short leases. Send it by registered letter in time and keep the post office receipt.

For a tenant in Malta whose rented home has a defect the landlord should put right: a structural problem such as a leaking ceiling or a cracked wall, a fault that stops you using the property properly, a water or electricity supply problem, or something the lease puts on the landlord, such as a broken appliance listed in the inventory. It describes the defect and when it appeared, asks for the repair within 14 days, offers access, and names the Adjudicating Panel as the next step. Send it by email.