“My own needs were put forward to get rid of me”: Landlord kicks Patricia Kunz (54) out of unfair means after 20 years

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Most of the streets in Buttisholz LU are already in shade. You can still enjoy the sun on the balcony of the penthouse apartment where Patricia Kunz lives. “I loved this apartment,” says the 54-year-old wistfully.

Kunz lived in the 2.5-room apartment for more than 20 years, from 1999 to 2021. Later, the landlord, Markus Z.*, was notified because he requested personal use.

“Mr. Z. plans to spend an increasingly larger part of his retirement in Gran Canaria and will therefore remain in Switzerland for a maximum of two to three months per year in the future,” the termination letter said. He no longer needs his current 4.5-room flat in Sursee LU, which is too big for him. “Mr. Z. plans to rent or sell this flat from the autumn and move instead to the much smaller 2.5-room flat in Buttisholz (…).”

“Personal needs were an excuse”

The letter dated April 2021 was made available to SonntagsBlick. Written on behalf of Z by HEV Immo AG Lucerne, a subsidiary of the Lucerne Homeowners Association.

Kunz initially wanted to legally challenge the termination decision. He knew Z. personally and could not imagine moving into his modest apartment. Shortly before the hearing in arbitration, he decided not to do this: “All this put a lot of emotional pressure on me. So I had neither the desire nor the energy for a legal dispute.”

At the end of July 2021, the tenant left his home with sadness; but a few weeks later he learned from the neighborhood that Z. had never taken over the vacated flat. Instead, a young man like Kunz with strong roots in the area moved here on September 1. “The man is neither related to my former landlord nor by marriage, and he still lives in that apartment to this day,” Kunz says. For him it is clear: “Personal need was just an excuse to get rid of me.”

The tenant’s request disturbed the landlord

According to Carlo Sommaruga (64), President of the Swiss Tenants Union (MV), “it happens again and again that landlords mistakenly demand their own needs in order to force the tenant to change.” This is especially true in urban areas where the risk of exposure is low. Sommaruga: “Owners often carry out minor renovations to avoid raising suspicion. The flat is then rented again at a much higher price.”

It is unknown whether the rent also increased in Patricia Kunz’s case. The owner did not want to comment to SonntagsBlick. It is clear that Z. is no longer on good terms with his long-term tenant since the summer of 2020. “He was very annoyed that I asked for a rent reduction because the reference interest rate was low,” says Kunz.

The following February, Kunz received a “request to comply with the duty to take into account and exercise due diligence.” It was criticized that on his days off he parked his car in the customer car park of a hairdresser’s shop, rather than in the underground car park, and that he “exploited” the stairwell to store shoes, skis and ski boots.

Landlords want to make termination processes easier

The letter ended with a clear threat: “If, contrary to our expectations, you do not comply with our request, we will unfortunately have to terminate your tenancy (…).” Two months later, the termination became a reality; but not because of personal items in the stairwell, but because of the alleged personal use.

The Swiss Homeowners Association (HEV) does not comment on this case but considers the risk of wrongful termination to be “extremely low”. A spokesman said: “Every landlord knows that termination can be appealed free of charge and in such a case the landlord must prove the existence of the alleged personal needs.”

Landlords have complained for years that personal use terminations are often difficult and time-consuming to complete in practice. In the autumn session, the real estate lobby introduced an amendment that would facilitate terminations and procedures in case of dispute.

*Known name

Source :Blick