The Lease Contract and the Parties' Obligations
The relationship between landlord and tenant is governed by the lease norms of the Civil Code, represented on this page by Articles 531, 540, 558, 562, 564 and 567. Article 531 defines the concept: under a lease contract, the lessor is obliged to transfer the item to the lessee for use for a fixed period, and the lessee is obliged to pay the lessor the agreed rent. The essence of the deal is thus bilateral — the right to use in exchange for payment — and the analysis of any dispute begins precisely with the performance of these obligations.
In the rental of an apartment this simple formula carries many practical questions: in what condition the premises are handed over, what rent is agreed, how payments are recorded, and what happens when obligations are breached. The Code's norms answer these with a general framework, while the details are fixed by the contract and by other provisions of the Code.