Eviction Action: Landlord's Rights, Grounds and Time Limits

Article 350 may apply to a genuine and necessary housing or business need of the lessor, spouse, descendants, ascendants or persons the lessor is legally obliged to support. Reconstruction or substantial renovation, extension or alteration for redevelopment also requires that use of the property would be impossible during the work.

The need of a new owner is also a ground: under TBK m.351, a person acquiring the immovable must give written notice to the tenant within one month of acquisition and bring the eviction action six months later. The new owner may also file the action within one month after the expiry of the lease term.

A written undertaking to vacate under TBK m.352 must be given after delivery of the premises. Two justified payment notices must fall within the period prescribed for the lease's duration; they need not concern consecutive months. Where the tenant or cohabiting spouse owns suitable housing within the same district or town-municipality boundaries, the lessor must also have been unaware of that housing when the lease was concluded.

For a need-based action, the one-month period runs from expiry of a fixed-term lease or the date determined by ordinary termination periods and notice rules for an indefinite lease (TBK m.350). Timely written notice of an intention to sue may extend the filing period by one lease year under m.353. Time spent in mandatory mediation must also be accounted for. Enforcement follows statutory procedure; there is no general rule that the court grants an additional reasonable moving period in every case.

The three-year restriction in TBK m.355 concerns eviction for need or reconstruction and redevelopment, rather than every eviction. Following eviction for need, re-letting to anyone other than the former tenant requires just cause. For reconstruction, the former tenant's priority to rent on the new terms and the one-month period after written notice must also be observed.

Whether the need is genuine, sincere and necessary is assessed on the basis of the actual use by the owner and his close relatives, available housing or workplace options, and the timing of notices and proceedings.

There is a procedural precondition to observe before filing an eviction action: under Article 18/B of Law No. 6325 (added by Law No. 7445), in disputes arising from a lease relationship — excluding eviction of the leased property through enforcement without judgment — an application to a mediator before filing suit is a procedural precondition. This requirement has applied since 1 September 2023.

Real-estate disputes should be reviewed first on the basis of the land registry, encumbrance records, municipal and zoning status, actual use, and the payment records between the parties. In particular, in matters concerning deed cancellation, eviction, partition and condominium ownership a single document is rarely sufficient; official records must be assessed together with the factual situation.

Before commencing an action or transaction it is essential to identify time limits and the competent authority correctly. The court of the place where the immovable is located, the form requirements before notaries, land-registry procedures, dates of notices and service records can directly affect the course of the dispute.

When preparing evidence, the deed, official deed, lease, bank receipts, formal notices, building permits, management plans and other technical documents that may be subject to expert review should be filed separately. Such preparation enables a clearer legal framework both when filing an action and in settlement discussions.