Section 1: Rules common to leases of houses and rural property.

Leases may be made either in writing or verbally, except that, in the case of rural property, the special rules for farm and share leases shall apply. .

If the lease made without writing has not yet received any performance, and one of the parties denies it, proof cannot be received by witnesses, however small the price, and however much it may be alleged that there has been a deposit given. The oath can only be referred to him who denies the lease.

When there is a dispute about the price of a verbal lease whose execution has begun, and there is no receipt, the owner will be believed on his oath, if the tenant does not prefer to ask for an expert valuation; in which case the costs of the valuation remain at his expense, if the valuation exceeds the price he has declared.

The lessee has the right to sublet, and even to assign his lease to another, if he has not been prohibited from doing so. It may be prohibited in whole or in part. This clause is always mandatory. .

The provisions of the second and third paragraphs of article 595 relating to leases entered into by usufructuaries are applicable to leases entered into by the tutor without the authorisation of the family council.

The lessor is obliged, by the nature of the contract, and without the need for any specific stipulation: 1° To provide the lessee with the rented property and, if it is his principal dwelling, decent accommodation. Where premises leased for residential use are unfit for such use, the lessor may not rely on the nullity of the lease or its termination to seek the eviction of the occupant ; 2°…

The lessor is obliged to deliver the property in a good state of repair of all kinds. He must make, during the term of the lease, all repairs that may become necessary, other than rental repairs.

The lessee is owed a guarantee for all defects or faults in the leased property that prevent its use, even if the lessor did not know of them at the time of the lease. If these defects or faults result in any loss for the lessee, the lessor is obliged to compensate him.

If, during the term of the lease, the leased property is destroyed in its entirety by a fortuitous event, the lease is terminated ipso jure; if it is destroyed only in part, the lessee may, depending on the circumstances, request either a reduction in the price, or the termination of the lease itself. In either case, there is no entitlement to compensation.

The lessor may not, during the term of the lease, change the form of the thing leased.