We’ve all heard the story – homeowners are weary of renting out their properties in South Africa as tenants seemingly have more rights than landlords. If a tenant breaches their agreement, it is often said that it can take years to remove them from the property and that you cannot get your rental income during this time. 

In the context of these fears, it is not uncommon for the lessor to take the law into their own hands by, for example cutting off the supply of electricity and water. This, however, creates unnecessary risks for landlords as the unlawful tenants have access to urgent court proceedings, known as “spoliation applications”. 

A spoliation application is a speedy remedy involving a straightforward affidavit. These applications are often brought before a Magistrate (in a Magistrate’s Court) and, in most instances, an order can be granted in favour of the tenant/occupier the very same day. Such an order would ordinarily compel the landlord to return access to certain amenities as well as anything else that the tenant or unlawful occupier has been dispossessed of. In the event that a landlord fails or refuses to comply with these orders, this may result in a warrant of arrest being issued against the landlord.

The nightmare for the landlord does not end there. Upon the order being granted, the Magistrate will indicate a return date. The landlord will then be required to appear in open court to face a Magistrate and the landlord will have to explain why they decided to take this route. There is not much likelihood that the magistrate will accept the landlords reasons as this conduct by the landlord is unlawful, and accordingly a final order will be made. Not only will this approach have wasted time (approximately a month or more), but the landlord shall remain in the exact same position they found themselves in prior to taking the law into their own hands. Additionally, the landlord will likely also have to expend funds on legal fees and more than likely a costs order which may be granted against the landlord in favour of the unlawful occupier.

By now, a landlord in this situation should start to see that this route is neither effective nor does it achieve the landlord’s desired outcome. Considering the above, a landlord by now would be questioning what to do if placed in this predicament.

The good news is that evictions are not as difficult or timely to achieve as many people have been led to believe. There are a number of steps to be followed, and these should be followed meticulously by a qualified legal expert in this field.

Should you find yourself in this predicament, you may not want to follow the legal route due to misinformation that evictions can take years, are costly and are seldom successful.  However, at HJW Attorneys we have a specialised evictions department which excels in obtaining not only eviction orders, but in actually ensuring that the unlawful occupier is evicted in as timely a fashion as possible.

The longer a landlord waits to institute these processes, the more the damages suffered by the landlord will increase. When a landlord is stuck with a tenant who is no longer paying rent, the landlord loses out on that rental income, other rentals that could be paid by a new tenant, as well as on the recovery of utilities and other municipal charges. 

Accordingly, when faced with a delinquent tenant, landlords should approach competent, specialised attorneys who deal with evictions on a daily basis for assistance and advice. 

At HJW Attorneys, our evictions and debt collection departments can assist you with any and all eviction and debt collection matters. 

For more information on evictions and spoliation applications, kindly contact us on info@hjw.co.za.

Written by Duncan O’Connor.

This article is provided for informational purposes only and should not be substituted for legal advice on any specific matter. Any opinions expressed herein are subject to the law as at the time of writing and will change in accordance with any change in the law. We recommend that you contact HJW ATTORNEYS at info@hjw.co.za  for advice directly applicable to your specific matter.