Heka is harmonising its lease agreements – consistent terms facilitate better housing comfort
We will be harmonising our tenants’ lease agreements in stages by the summer of 2026. This will involve updating the content of our lease agreements so that in future all of our tenants are subject to the same terms. Because of this, we will be preparing new lease agreements with our tenants for their current apartments, which will replace their existing lease agreements. The harmonisation will change some of the terms of our tenants’ lease agreements, but will not affect rent.
The aim of the harmonisation is to achieve better housing comfort as a result of all tenants being subject to the same agreement terms going forward. The harmonisation is also necessary to ensure that our lease agreements comply with current legislation. Currently the terms of our lease agreements concerning things like smoking, water charges and the moving day vary depending on when the agreement was made.
We will be carrying out the harmonisation so that the first updated lease agreements enter into effect on 1 January 2025, with the rest entering into effect in stages by the summer of 2026. The harmonisation will start at eight Heka locations in Kallahti, Mellunmäki and Vuosaari. The tenants of these locations will receive letters from Heka in spring 2024 containing instructions for signing new lease agreements.
Your home at Heka will not change when your lease agreement is renewed
We will prepare a new lease agreement with each tenant for their current apartment, which will replace their existing lease agreement. This means that the tenant’s tenancy will continue uninterrupted when they sign the new lease agreement by the specified deadline.
The harmonisation will change some of the essential terms of the lease agreement, for which we require the tenant’s consent. If the tenant does not accept the new terms and refuses to sign the new lease agreement, we will terminate their lease agreement. During the period of notice, we will provide the tenant with the opportunity to sign a new lease agreement with the new terms. If the tenant does not sign a new lease agreement during the notice period, their tenancy at Heka will ends after the six-month notice period.
Instructions for tenants
We have compiled information about the harmonisation of our lease agreements and instructions for the renewal of lease agreement.
We will be harmonising our lease agreements in stages, one area at a time by the end of 2025. We will contact the tenants whose lease agreements are affected by the harmonisation.
Once the harmonisation process reaches your location and if you need to renew your lease agreement, you will receive a letter from Heka well in advance. The letter will contain instructions for signing the new lease agreement.
Approximately 34,000 lease agreements to be renewed
The number of lease agreements that need to be harmonised is approximately 34,000, which accounts for the majority of Heka lease agreements.
The harmonisation does not apply to tenants
- whose lease agreement started on or after 1 January 2022, as the terms of these agreements are already in line with the new lease agreement model
- who are living in a building that will undergo renovations starting in 2025 or 2026.
Key changes in the terms of the lease agreements concern indoor smoking, water charges and the moving day
Heka still has a large number of lease agreements that do not include any kind of smoking ban and locations where smoking bans only apply to shared facilities. As a result, smoking is a common topic in the notifications submitted to Heka, as there are Heka buildings where smoking is permitted in some apartments, but prohibited in others. The current situation concerning smoking bans is very complicated for both tenants and Heka’s staff. Heka has also applied for smoking bans for some of its locations in accordance with the Tobacco Act, but the process is slow and laborious. The harmonisation of lease agreements is the most efficient and quickest way of imposing a consistent smoking ban on all Heka apartments.
Following the harmonisation of our lease agreements, all Heka lease agreements will include a ban on smoking inside the apartment and in the outdoor facilities of the apartment, which will increase equality between tenants. The indoor smoking ban will also increase housing comfort, improve housing health and reduce the property damage and subsequent repair needs caused by smoking.
The harmonisation of lease agreements will also add a term on whether water charges are included in the rent and a term on water charge invoicing practices to Heka lease agreements.
Following the harmonisation of lease agreements, all Heka lease agreements will define the end date of the lease agreement as the moving day. This term will prevent the overlapping of old and new lease agreements by allowing the tenant to move to a new apartment right at the start of the month.
Furthermore, the harmonisation will change the terms of our lease agreements concerning responsibilities for the maintenance of the outdoor facilities of apartments and invoices for damage.
The new lease agreements will also include information on Heka’s privacy policy, meaning how Heka processes the personal data of its tenants and other residents.