Landlord Ordered to Pay Tenants €12,800

He Claimed €10,530 in Unpaid Rent — But Was Ordered to Pay €12,800 to His Tenants Instead: Here’s Why

As told by Paris lawyer Samuel Zeitoun, this case is a strong reminder that both landlords and tenants must always comply with their legal obligations under a lease.

Investing in rental property isn’t always smooth sailing. In 2020, a landlord put his 26-square-meter studio in the Paris suburbs back on the market, renting it to a couple for €800 a month. About a year and a half after signing the lease, the tenants stopped paying rent.

After the first formal notice to pay went unanswered, a second was issued in 2023 for €10,530—representing more than a year’s worth of unpaid rent. When there was still no response, the landlord invoked the termination clause of the lease, allowing the contract to be canceled due to nonpayment. The tenants, in turn, took their landlord to court.

The judge noted that the debt had not been settled within the legal two-month window, meaning the termination clause applied. The lease was therefore dissolved, and the tenants became occupants without legal title, obliged to leave the property.

Yet, in a twist, the judge also ordered the landlord to pay €12,800 to his tenants.

“This landlord used to have his tenants fill out an information sheet — which is optional — when renting,” explains attorney Samuel Zeitoun. “In this case, only a couple was listed. In reality, they moved in with two children, and the woman was pregnant with a third.”

That made the family far too large for a 26-square-meter studio. In 2021, the tenants asked the family allowance office (Caf) to assess whether the apartment met the legal standards of decency.

According to the Caf’s inspection report, the property was overcrowded and unsuitable given the family’s size — the required minimum living space for four people being 34 square meters.

The report also cited other violations: no ventilation, dampness, and unsafe electrical wiring — all factors that rendered the dwelling “indecent.” This finding entitled the tenants to compensation for loss of enjoyment. The Caf suspended their housing benefits and ordered the landlord to carry out the necessary compliance work.

Still, the declaration of indecency did not exempt the tenants from paying rent.

“In our defense, we argued that the tenants acted in bad faith,” Zeitoun said. “You can’t hold a landlord responsible for overcrowding he didn’t know about, especially since the tenant lied about it.”

But the court found that tenants are presumed to be acting in good faith and upheld their claim for loss of enjoyment. As a result, the landlord was ordered to pay €12,800 in damages.

Even if the landlord believed his tenants had acted dishonestly, the court ruled he was still responsible for addressing the defects in the property.

“We believe the dampness was caused by overcrowding,” said Zeitoun. “The landlord, who works in construction, wanted to do the repairs himself, but the tenants refused him entry.”

The judge, however, noted that the landlord “failed to demonstrate any attempt to remedy the situation” and offered no explanation for this negligence.

By the time of the judgment, the rent arrears had reached €11,552. After deducting €4,976 in housing aid that had been withheld since the property was declared indecent, the court ruled that the tenants owed only €6,576. Since the landlord was ordered to pay them €12,800, the net balance in their favor came to a little over €6,000.

In the end, the landlord never actually paid this amount — the tenants didn’t leave immediately after the lease was terminated.

“That sum was offset by the rent still owed after the ruling, since rent remains due until the tenants fully vacate the premises,” Zeitoun explained.

The family has since been rehoused in social housing following their eviction.