Rescinding rental contract

@lindaeva , from what PedroSilva1982 says, it looks like you have to live there for 4 months (until end of July), then notify landlord, plus another 4 months after that until the end of November. 8 months altogether, right?

You can always talk to your landlord, explaining the problems you have encountered in the property. The termination can be friendly. If you feel resistance from him, I suggest you get advice from a lawyer or solicitor, as any explanation here outside the conditions stipulated by law, becomes meaningless, as we don't know what your lease contract is, the clauses written there, the duration of your contract, etc, as well as the rationale for your reasons for not fulfilling the contract you have signed...

@JohnnyPT , Great, thanks, I'll do that. That's what I was thinking of doing anyway, I just wanted to check if anybody had another suggestion/experience.

Your contract is likely to be less than a year. We are talking about 2 months' rent (60 days), one of which you can use the month's deposit (mês de caução) previously paid...

- @JohnnyPT

Ok, it's 90 days. Normally you sign a contract for 1 year, if you don't know the country, city, neighbourhood yet... There are always better houses in better places. One year is enough to do this research.

These "friendly" laws for tenants that you mention, are for old rental contracts (pre-1990 rental contracts) and also for tenants over 65 years old and with low income. There, the landlord performs a social duty for these people, a duty that should be carried out by the Portuguese state! For these cases, laws are friendly to the tenant. For the other, more recent agreements, new rules are applied, which, in my opinion, are fair to both landlord and tenant. In your case, remember that the landlord may have used a real estate agency, who charged a commission, which is at least one month's rent... Do you think it's right that the tenant can leave after 1 month of lease? Put yourself in the landlord's shoes...

In your case, remember that the landlord may have used a real estate agency, who charged a commission, which is at least one month's rent... Do you think it's right that the tenant can leave after 1 month of lease? Put yourself in the landlord's shoes...

- @JohnnyPT

You can always talk to your landlord, explaining the problems you have encountered in the property. The termination can be friendly.

- @JohnnyPT

@ctomac yeah and in the US you can be evicted after one month’s rent not paid within two weeks after your due date, whereas in Europe, in the countries I’m very familiar with, I’d you don’t pay rent you get tu stay for months sometimes years before you get kicked out by a bailiff. So the idea that Portugal has a “landlord priority” system seems driven by a subjective emotional response, not facts. Landlords incur high costs with the turnover from one tenant to the next - repairs, paying for the search for a new tenant, etc. 

@JohnnyPT agree 100% - that’s why there is a retraction period of two weeks after you’ve signed a rental contract - without giving a reason, you can cancel a signed lease before moving in. If you want a one month cancellation you can get a short term rental instead - much more expensive, but more like an Air B’nB. I

@JohnnyPT agree 100% - that’s why there is a retraction period of two weeks after you’ve signed a rental contract - without giving a reason, you can cancel a signed lease before moving in. If you want a one month cancellation you can get a short term rental instead - much more expensive, but more like an Air B’nB. I

- @bettinakozlowski

@ctomac yeah and in the US you can be evicted after one month’s rent not paid within two weeks after your due date, whereas in Europe, in the countries I’m very familiar with, I’d you don’t pay rent you get tu stay for months sometimes years before you get kicked out by a bailiff. So the idea that Portugal has a “landlord priority” system seems driven by a subjective emotional response, not facts. Landlords incur high costs with the turnover from one tenant to the next - repairs, paying for the search for a new tenant, etc. 

- @bettinakozlowski

@JohnnyPT agree 100% - that’s why there is a retraction period of two weeks after you’ve signed a rental contract - without giving a reason, you can cancel a signed lease before moving in. If you want a one month cancellation you can get a short term rental instead - much more expensive, but more like an Air B’nB. I

- @bettinakozlowski

Now THAT I didn't know (about the retraction period of two weeks). Where is this legislated?..

- @ctomac