Facts

This case concerns a lease with staggered rents, where the landlord has notified a rent increase for the due date of the staggering agreement. The dispute concerns the applicable calculation method to assess the admissibility of this rent increase.

The main facts are as follows

  • In 1977, the landlord concluded a lease with the tenant for an apartment, with an initial rent of 5,742 francs per year.
  • In 1989, the parties concluded a court settlement before the Conciliation Commission, setting a staggered rent of 7,920 francs from May 1, 1989 to October 31, 1990, then 8,280 francs from November 1, 1990 to April 30, 1992.
  • In 1991, the landlord notified a new rent increase to 11,025 francs effective May 1, 1992, the due date of the staggering agreement.
  • The tenant contested this increase, unsuccessfully before the cantonal instances.
  • The landlord appealed to the Federal Tribunal to obtain the annulment of the cantonal judgment and the setting of the rent at 11,025 francs.

Considerations

The Federal Tribunal dismissed the appeal and confirmed the contested judgment, for the following reasons:

Firstly, to assess the admissibility of a rent increase in the context of a lease with staggered rents, one must refer to the due date of the staggering agreement, and not to the effective date of the last rent installment. Indeed, the staggered rent covers all costs for the entire duration of the lease, and the parties accepted this uncertain nature when concluding the contract.

Secondly, the…