In this dispute, owners wish to end their tenant’s lease to recover their property. The courts consider this to be illegal and order them to pay 3,000 euros to the tenant.
According to article 17 of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen “property is an inviolable and sacred right, no one can be deprived of it”. The right to property therefore implies that the owner of real estate can have exclusive use of the housing he owns. From then on, he can live there, sell it or rent it out. In the latter case, nothing is supposed to prevent an owner from recovering his property at the end of the rental lease concluded with his tenant.
However, recent case law could well be emulated, to the great dismay of landlords. This case pitted a real estate company (SCI) which owned an apartment in Paris against the tenant of the accommodation, Théophile (the name has been changed).
For several years, Théophile rented the apartment to the SCI, paying his rent without delay, maintaining the premises properly and renewing his rental lease multiple times. However, on December 7, 2018, the owners sent him a letter indicating that they wanted to recover the apartment and no longer rent it out. Since Théophile’s rental lease was coming to an end, the owners gave him notice. The tenant had to leave the premises no later than June 10, 2019.
Except that Théophile refuses to leave! Aged over 65 and with a low income, he claims to benefit from the status of “protected tenant”. As such, according to the law of July 6, 1989, he cannot be kicked out of his accommodation without his owner offering him a rehousing solution. From there, relations between the owners and the tenant deteriorate.
Both parties end up before a judicial court, then before the Paris Court of Appeal. The SCI wants the justice system to validate the tenant’s dismissal and eviction and wants the latter to pay occupancy compensation. However, the appeal judges ruled in favor of Théophile. In a decision rendered on May 9, 2023, the Paris Court of Appeal cancels the leave and rejects the SCI’s requests.
Considering itself wronged, the SCI appealed to the Court of Cassation. The owners insist that Théophile’s income is not low enough for him to be recognized as a “protected tenant”. According to them, Théophile’s tax notice for 2018 proves that his income exceeds the ceilings in force for the allocation of social housing. A condition actually necessary to claim the status of “protected tenant”.
In its judgment no. 572 FS-B, delivered on October 24, 2024, the Court of Cassation confirmed that article 15-III of the law of July 6, 1989 provides that an owner “cannot refuse the renewal of the lease to a tenant over 65 years old whose annual resources are lower than the ceiling in force for the allocation of approved rental accommodation”. The highest court in the country, however, considered that the resources to be taken into account are those received by the tenant during the 12 months preceding the issuance of the leave. A simple tax notice is therefore not enough.
Noting that the income received by Théophile, from December 2017 to November 2018, was well below the resource ceiling set for the year 2018, the magistrates therefore confirmed the judgment rendered by the Paris Court of Appeal. Théophile’s leave was therefore canceled, his rental lease was renewed and the SCI was also ordered to pay him 3,000 euros to reimburse the legal costs incurred during this long legal procedure. Without a rehousing proposal, the SCI will not recover its apartment, which it nevertheless owns.
