Rent Determination Case Lawyer for Landlord

 The inflationary economic environment and rapid price increases in the real estate market lead to a serious imbalance in long-term rental agreements. While newly rented properties are rented at current market rates, the rental fees paid by old tenants are well below the market and almost melt away over time due to legal restrictions (CPI rates). This situation creates a serious loss of income and grievance for property owners.

Turkish Code of Obligations (TBK) art. 344/3 envisages a highly effective legal mechanism to eliminate this imbalance and protect the property rights of property owners: Rent Determination Case. However, this case; It depends on the monitoring of limitation periods, the accuracy of precedent research, the control of expert reports and the very strict procedural rules of the Supreme Court. Carrying out these processes with an expert directly determines the fate of the case.

In this guide; We discuss the procedural details that landlords should pay attention to in order to avoid loss of rights in rental fee determination cases, accompanied by the most up-to-date case law of the Supreme Court and comparative tables.

1. What is a Rent Determination Case and What are the Conditions? (TBK article 344)

Rent determination case is a type of case that enables the disputes between the parties regarding the rent amount in residential and roofed workplace rents to be resolved through the court and the new period rent price to be determined by the judge.

The basic conditions required by law for a home or business owner to successfully file this lawsuit are as follows:

• Existence of a Valid Lease Agreement: There must be a legally valid lease relationship between the parties, established in writing or verbally.
• Legal Benefit Condition: The plaintiff must demonstrate that the current rental price is well below market rates and that he has a legal interest in filing this lawsuit.
• Mandatory Mediation Application: In all rent determination cases to be filed as of September 1, 2023, mediation must be applied before going to court. It is a condition of litigation.
• 5-Year Time Limit (For Fair Value): From the establishment of the lease agreement or the last determination of precedent At least 5 years (including extension years) have passed must.

2. 30 Day Rule and Notice Condition: Impact on the Start of the New Term

A rent determination lawsuit can be filed at any time, but the new rent determined by the court It can be valid from the first day of the current new lease period. The time limits required by law must be complied with.

1. Direct Way to File a Lawsuit: The rent determination case starts from the beginning of the new lease period. at least 30 days ago must be filed in court.
2. Way to Send a Notice: Beginning of the new lease period at least 30 days before If a written warning has been notified to the tenant that the rental price will be increased, the determined price will be valid from the beginning of the period, regardless of when the lawsuit is filed within the new rental period.
3. If There is an Increase Clause in the Contract (Exception): If there is a clear provision in the lease agreement that the rent will be increased in each new period, the landlord does not need to give a 30-day notice. The amount determined in the lawsuit filed until the end of the new term becomes valid from the first day of the term.

3. Equity Discount in the Light of the Supreme Court Decisions (10% - 20% Former Tenant Rule)

The most technical stage of the rent determination case is the determination that the court will make based on the comparable market value. equity (former tenant) discount phase. The expert panel determines the current value of the real estate (for example, 40,000 TL) if it is rented vacant. However, the judge cannot directly rule on this figure.

According to the established jurisprudence of the 3rd Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals (Ex: 08.05.2018 T., 2017/7927 E., 2018/4805 K.); Considering that the tenant is the former tenant, the judge decides to pay the determined market price. A reasonable equity reduction of 10% to 20% It is mandatory to do.

The calculation is established mathematically by the formula:

Here, the range is determined at the judge's discretion. This reduction must be made directly by the judge, not by the expert; Otherwise, it will lead to repeated reductions and cause the decision to be overturned by the Supreme Court.

4. "Improvement" and "Uncertain Receivable" Errors in the Rent Determination Case: Current Supreme Court of Appeals General Assembly Decisions

The biggest mistake that landlords and lawyers who do not specialize in this field make is that they file a rent determination case as an "indefinite debt case" and think that they can increase the requested amount through "improvement" after the expert report is received.

As clearly emphasized in the precedent decision of the General Assembly of the Supreme Court of Appeals dated 16.03.2021 (Article No: 2017/2792, Decision No: 2021/267);

• The purpose of rent determination cases is only to determine the rent for the new period, and these cases cannot be divided due to their nature.
• In this case, "rights regarding excess cannot be reserved" and the case cannot be filed as a partial or indefinite receivables case.
• The rent requested when filing a lawsuit cannot be increased later through improvement.

For this reason, it is vital that the amount requested in the petition is analyzed very accurately from the beginning and determined precisely according to real precedents in the region. We recommend that you get legal support from an expert rent determination lawyer on this matter.

5. Regional Precedent Values ​​and Courthouse Density in Istanbul

Exorbitantly changing rent prices throughout Istanbul necessitate the differentiation of litigation strategies on a regional basis. Istanbul expert rent determination case lawyer In the processes we carry out, each region has its own unique character:

• Ataşehir, Kadıköy and Maltepe Line: Especially Ataşehir rent determination case expert As our staff follows closely; While determining the comparable rental prices of the branded housing projects in Batı Ataşehir and the real estate on the Kadıköy Bağdat Street and Maltepe coastline, not only the square meters but also the social facilities offered by the site, parking capacity and dues burden are carefully examined by expert committees. Cases of this region Istanbul Anatolian (Kartal) Courthouse It is heard in the Civil Courts of Peace, and due to the density, cases are concluded on average between 8 and 18 months.
• Şişli, Beşiktaş and Beyoğlu Line: In these central regions within the jurisdiction of Çağlayan Courthouse, especially when identifying historical buildings and old workplaces, the wear and tear of the building, ceiling height and locational advantages come to the fore.
• Bakırköy and Esenyurt Line: In this courthouse area where population circulation is very fast, following the notification processes is the most critical corner in terms of accelerating the case.

6. Homeowners' Questions Under the Spotlight (FAQ)

Question 1: Is it really mandatory to go to a mediator before filing a rent determination lawsuit?

Reply: Yes. As of September 1, 2023, it is a mandatory requirement to apply to a mediation office before filing a lawsuit in rent determination cases. If an agreement cannot be reached during the mediation stage, an application can be made to the court with the final report received.

Question 2: From when can the new rent determined by the court be requested?

Reply: If the legal 30-day time limits (warning or filing period) are complied with, the price determined by the court will be valid from the beginning of the new rental period. While the case is ongoing, the tenant continues to pay at the old price; When the case is finalized, the accumulated differences are collected retroactively with legal interest.

Question 3: Can the decision to determine the rental price be enforced before it is finalized?

Reply: No. According to the established decisions of the Supreme Court, since the decisions made as a result of the rent determination case are of a constructive nature (creating a new situation), they cannot be subject to enforcement proceedings without being finalized. The decision must be finalized for the collection of difference receivables. Because in essence, these cases are not "Eda" cases, but "Detection" cases. It is mandatory that the determined price be finalized.

Question 4: Can't a rent increase lawsuit be filed before the end of 5 years?

Reply: A rent determination lawsuit can be filed before the end of 5 years; However, in this case, the court cannot conduct a comparable market research and must determine the increase rate only within the limit of the 12-month CPI average of the previous year. Therefore, as a rule, there is no legal benefit in filing a lawsuit for market value determination before the end of 5 years.

Question 5: How is an expert peer determination made if my house is furnished?

Reply: When determining the equivalent rental price for furnished residences, after determining the vacant value of the property, a higher current value is determined by taking into account the quality of the goods, the wear and tear, and the furnished rental potential.

7. Why Should You Get Professional Lawyer Support in Rent Determination Case?

Rent determination cases are not cases that can be won by presenting an ordinary petition in the courthouse corridors. Determining the price to be requested in the petition irreversibly and accurately from the beginning due to the "improvement ban", directing the expert report by submitting the correct comparable properties to the court, and developing technical defenses against the equity discount rate to be applied by the court require high-level real estate law expertise.

Especially Kartal rent determination lawyer And Istanbul lawyer specialized in rent In processes managed by our staff; Recording the advantages of the real estate at the time of discovery and making technical objections against erroneous expert reports in line with the Supreme Court criteria are the keys to the successful conclusion of the case.

Harmonizing the rental price with current economic realities and the comparable market rate is one of the most fundamental constitutional rights of property owners to preserve the value of the savings they have accumulated over many years. However, rent determination cases; It is an error-free technical process that requires the accurate determination of the figure to be requested at the beginning of the case due to the "improvement ban", the location and quality advantages of the real estate in the discovery and expert processes, and strategic defenses against the Supreme Court's precedent discount rates. Attorney Mehmet Emin Kurşun Law Firm; With its deep experience in real estate law, especially in the regions that are the epicenter of rental disputes in Istanbul, such as Kadıköy, Ataşehir, Maltepe and Şişli, it is based in Istanbul in order to prevent property owners from losing their rights, manage the mediation table correctly and conclude the cases in your favor in the Civil Courts of Peace as soon as possible. It offers professional, transparent and result-oriented litigation and consultancy services with its expert staff.