Brazil: renting, rent adjustment, guarantee and tenant rights

How much and when the rent can rise

In a residential contract the rent is free, but it cannot be set in foreign currency or tied to changes in the exchange rate or the minimum wage (Law 8,245/1991, art. 17). The adjustment can only be annual: a clause with a frequency under one year is void (Law 10,192/2001, art. 2, § 1). The index is not in the law: what the contract says counts.

The calculation is the index accumulated over the 12 months before the adjustment month. With the IGP-M from October 2025 to September 2026, which accumulated 3.35%, a rent of R$2,000.00 becomes R$2,066.97 in October 2026. If the accumulated figure is negative, the rent only falls if the contract or an agreement allows it.

The parties can agree a new amount or change the adjustment clause whenever they like (art. 18). Without an agreement, after three years of the contract or of the last agreement, the landlord or the tenant can ask the court for a review to bring the rent to the market price (art. 19).

The contract’s guarantee

The landlord may demand a guarantee: a cash deposit, a guarantor, rental surety insurance or a fiduciary assignment of investment fund shares. More than one type in the same contract is forbidden, on pain of nullity (art. 37). The cash deposit cannot exceed three months of rent and is kept in a savings account, with all the earnings in favor of the tenant (art. 38, § 2).

Who pays what

The landlord pays the property administration and brokerage fees, the extraordinary condominium expenses, such as renovation works or painting the façade, and, unless the contract expressly says otherwise, the property’s taxes and charges, such as the IPTU, and the complementary fire insurance (art. 22). The contract can pass the IPTU to the tenant.

The tenant pays the rent and charges, the electricity, gas, water and sewage and telephone costs, the ordinary condominium expenses, such as staff wages and cleaning of the common areas, and the surety insurance premium (art. 23). The rent falls due on the date in the contract or, with no date, by the sixth working day of the month after the one due.

Term and leaving the contract

The contract can have any term (art. 3). Written and with 30 months or more, it ends at the end of the term, without notice (art. 46). Shorter or verbal, it is extended for an indefinite period, and the landlord can only take the property back in the cases the law lists, such as own use or when the lease goes past five years (art. 47).

During the term, the landlord cannot take the property back. The tenant can return it early, paying the agreed penalty, proportional to the part of the contract already served (art. 4). Whoever leaves because of a job transfer to another place is exempt from the penalty, giving the landlord 30 days’ written notice. In an indefinite-term contract, a written notice of 30 days is enough; without it, the landlord can charge one month’s rent and charges (art. 6).

If the property is sold

If the property is sold during the lease, the buyer can terminate the contract and give 90 days to vacate, unless the lease is for a fixed term, the contract has a validity clause in case of sale and it is recorded in the property registry (art. 8). Before selling, the landlord must give the tenant a right of first refusal to buy, on equal terms with third parties, informing them of all the conditions of the deal by notification or another unequivocal means (art. 27).

Inspection and return

The landlord must deliver the property in a state fit for use and, if you ask, give a detailed description of its state, with the existing defects (art. 22, I and V). Ask in writing and take photos. On leaving, you return the property in the state you received it, apart from wear from normal use (art. 23, III). Tell the landlord right away about any damage or defect that is theirs to fix (art. 23, IV) and do not change the property’s form without prior written consent (art. 23, VI).