How to include furniture and appliances in a property lease
Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.
At a glance
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Context piece
- Argentine real estate lawyer Enrique Abatti advises landlords and tenants to describe every piece of furniture and equipment explicitly in a lease.
- Inventories should include photographs and an agreed replacement value for each item to reduce disputes over damage, loss and security deposits.
- Commercial leases require additional maintenance obligations for specialized equipment, including scheduled official servicing.
A sofa, refrigerator or commercial oven can become the center of a rental dispute if a lease does not clearly describe it. Argentine real estate lawyer Enrique Abatti says contracts covering furnished properties should be “case-specific and explicit” from the start.
The first step is to distinguish between the type of lease. A furnished home is different from a commercial premises with specialized equipment. Temporary leases, including tourist rentals and Airbnb-style arrangements, can run for any period from one day to one year under current rules. That flexibility does not remove the need to document exactly what the tenant receives.
case-specific and explicit
Abatti warns of “widespread malpractice” in the preparation of inventories, particularly when owners fail to assign a replacement value to each item. Without an agreed amount, damage or a missing object can trigger weeks of arguments and lead to arbitrary deductions from the security deposit.
He recommends giving every item a written value, even when the figure does not match its actual market price. The parties may agree on amounts that are effectively arbitrary, he says, provided both accept them. The written figure can then be applied if an item is damaged or lost, under the principle of contractual freedom in Article 958 of Argentina’s Civil and Commercial Code.
widespread malpractice
The inventory should be complete and detailed, with photographs of the property and its contents. For larger rentals, a notary may certify the condition of the goods. Commercial properties require even greater precision because bars, bakeries and restaurants depend on equipment that needs regular maintenance.
“It is extremely important that the tenant assumes the obligation to carry out servicing every six months,” Abatti says. The contract can include penalties for failing to maintain equipment and may allow termination if the failure continues. Refrigerators, extractor hoods, industrial stoves and other assets should all be listed and assigned a value.
It is extremely important that the tenant assumes the obligation to carry out servicing every six months.
About this summary
Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.
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