Inspection Association (NPO) / Chairman, Organization for the Promotion of Distribution of Vacant Houses / Former Director, Japan Association of Lawyers for Arbitration ADR
Born in 1948 in Hiroshima Prefecture. In 2004, he founded the Japan Housing Performance Inspection Association, a non-profit organization dedicated to solving housing problems. He advises on contractual issues such as subleases, deposits and guarantees, and victim groups, and negotiates and discusses with relevant government agencies and related companies.
Q. When I signed the contract, the room on the floor with the best view was full, so I had no choice but to move to a room on a less sunny floor. Later, a room with a good view became available, so I asked the landlord to move me to a new room.
The landlord agreed to move me and told me to go to the management company to complete the necessary procedures. However, the management company told me to pay the same amount as the renewal fee as a documentation fee. Do I have to pay the renewal fee or the amount the management company says I should pay?
A. Even if the landlord has agreed to move the room, it is still necessary to “amend the lease” or “renew the lease. If the term of the contract itself remains the same as the previous contract, only the rent and room number need to be changed, in which case it would only be a “contract amendment”.
However, if the landlord requests that the lease be rewritten, you must comply. Also, if you go through a management company, you may be charged a large fee.
In this case, you can explain the situation to the landlord and ask him or her to go through the process directly with you, or ask the landlord to reduce the fee (if it is a document preparation fee, you can ask the landlord to reduce it to 2,000 to 3,000 yen).
