What a Cyprus tenancy agreement should include

The parties and the premises

• Full legal names of landlord and tenant, with ID or passport numbers
• An address for each party for formal notices, and an email if notices may be served that way
• The exact property and unit being let, described unambiguously
• Whether it is let furnished or unfurnished — and if furnished, an inventory attached as an annex

Term, and what happens at the end of it

State the start date and, if fixed, the end date. Then state explicitly what happens when a fixed term expires: does it end, or does it continue month to month? An agreement that is silent on this is the most common source of a tenancy nobody can cleanly end.

Note also that Cyprus has rent control legislation which can apply to certain properties and tenancies and can affect both increases and a landlord's ability to recover possession. Whether it applies to your property is a question for a lawyer, and it is worth asking before you sign, not after.

Rent — and the three details people leave out

• The amount, and the day of the month it is due
• How it is paid — bank transfer to a named account, or otherwise. Vagueness here causes real arguments
• What counts as late, and what follows. A defined grace period and a defined consequence beat an unwritten assumption
• Whether and how rent may be increased, consistent with any applicable rent control rules

The deposit

State the amount, that it is security for the tenant's obligations and not advance rent, and the conditions and timeframe for returning it. Commit to giving an itemised written statement of any deductions with supporting evidence. This one clause prevents most deposit disputes, because it removes the ambiguity that fuels them.

Utilities and common expenses

This is the single most argued-about term in Cyprus tenancies. Be explicit about who pays electricity, water, internet, refuse collection and sewerage, and above all who pays the building's common expenses (κοινόχρηστα).

Also state that accounts should be transferred into the tenant's name where applicable, and that evidence of settlement is required when they move out.

Obligations on both sides

• Tenant: keep the property clean and in good condition, fair wear and tear excepted; report defects promptly in writing; do not alter the property or change locks without written consent; insure their own belongings
• Landlord: deliver the property fit for habitation; keep the structure, exterior and installations in repair; allow quiet enjoyment; insure the building

Access, subletting and short-term platforms

Set a notice period for landlord access — twenty-four hours is a common standard — with an exception for genuine emergencies, and a right to show the property to prospective tenants near the end of the term.

Prohibit assignment and subletting without written consent, and say explicitly that this includes offering the property on short-term letting platforms. A general subletting clause written before those platforms existed is often argued not to cover them.

Ending it, and handing it back

• Notice period for a month-to-month tenancy, and how notice is validly served
• What early termination of a fixed term requires
• The condition the property must be returned in, and that all keys and access devices are returned
• A joint inspection at the end, recorded in writing — the counterpart to the move-in inventory

The administrative clauses people skip

• How formal notices are served and when they take effect
• That the agreement may be subject to stamp duty, and who arranges it
• Governing law and jurisdiction
• That the written agreement is the whole agreement and can only be varied in writing
• Signature blocks for both parties — and, as is common practice in Cyprus, two witnesses