Another friend of mine has fallen to the appalling local practise of allowing a business to start up in a particular location then once all the hard slog has been done, ie the set-up,decor,marketing etc..the landlord then simply refuses to extend the lease or worse, increases the rent to a burdensome level so the leasee is forced out.The landlord then is free to put in a cousin/friend etc to run a similar, knock off place.
Just a word to those thinking of renting, get as much of it as you can in writing/espanol and notarized etc..yes it's basic but sometimes people are charming and you think, oh this won't happen with this guy...welll it can and it does. It's hugely expensive and it's often why you see businesses constantly moving from location to location.It's really a bad and short-sighted business practise.If you take a short lease/rental period ,try to get an option to renew or first right of refusal.
Buena suerte!
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Of course that happens. being there... anyways, legally a rental fee can be increase when the contract is due and the tenant have to give a pre notice of 30 days. and the increase cannot be more than the 10%, (as far as we know).
Commercial contracts are regulated just as much as residential leases are. They must be registered with the MIVIOT and the deposit must be placed with them. There is also a free download form of the standard contract and deposit forms.
I will post the article if you guys are interested
So there are regulations regarding this and contracts which are supposed to be honored.......so we get down to the real problem. The same problem you have with any contract here, including those for building projects. The court system is a nightmare. We are told that this will be tied up in court for so long and the expense of the court journey comes out of our pocket. This is a HUGE deterrent. So there lies the real problem......we have no recourse......at least one that is not expensive and takes years.
There is recourse provided you did the right thing from the get go, which is registering your lease at the MIVIOT (Ministry of Housing). All leases commercial or residential need to be registered. Security deposits must be paid to the MIVIOT not the owners and that is another mistake.
It does not have to go through court systems. I will post the law, the sample commercial contract and an article about it shortly
Olga.....you did not read my post thoroughly. It is a contract to BUILD a project. But it is in the same court system and yes, we are all told, who have a contract, to go through the court system.
Walter
This goes to the sphere of civil law. All this items, issues and subjects should and must be covered in the contract signed by both parties. It must include every single detail that both parties considered to be covered. You could even stated in the contract where will be the institution to solve any conflict in case they happen or develop.
A rental control board? Rents tied to inflation? In Boquete? You are kidding, right? TOO funny.
I can name FOUR businesses--owned and operated by both Panamanians and Expats-- to whom this has happened in the recent past. Thousands of dollars are spent upgrading the building, installing plumbing, electrical, etc., getting a business established and then, poof! Rent is doubled, lease rejected. Be careful. Get it ALL in writing. In Spanish. Notarized. What she said.
That is the way it should be. In wrtting, in a contract, stating all the issues that could cause a conflict in the future.
It also could cover all the structural improvements done in the place leased or rented and how the cost will be splitted between both parties. We have a spanish saying " Cuentas claras, chocolate espeso".
This is more a matter of commercial greediness and bad ethic practice than an illegal situation. So this require the use of common sense and do everything in writting. Cover all the subjects that could cause a conflict, state the duration of the lease and what will be taken into consideration after the contract ends.
This is not a "local" practice, it happens everywhere.
I agree Karl. I have seen this in several countries including the US. Not saying this is a nice practice, but can certainly be avoided by including some clauses in your lease.
You should have your lease agreement include an option to extend your lease. In addition it should mention how much the lease is allowed to increase if it is extended.
Doing your due diligence and using a good attorney can avoid all of this.
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