Professional lease: a tenant sentenced to payment of 12 million

A dispute between a real estate manager and his tenant was recently settled by the Cotonou Commercial Court. Seized on July 15, 2024, the court ordered the termination of the lease, the tenant’s expulsion as well as all the occupants of the premises located near the Pont de Fifadji.

According to information from Banouto, the dispute takes root in a lease for professional use signed on January 28, 2018, with monthly rent set at 300,000 CFA francs. According to the complainant, the tenant has not honored his payments since October 2020, accumulating a debt which reached 13,200,000 CFA francs in June 2024.

Despite several formal notice and an amicable agreement concluded in January 2024, only three partial payments had been made, leaving an unpaid 10,900,000 CFA francs.

Faced with this situation, the real estate manager seized justice to demand the termination of the lease, the tenant’s expulsion as well as the payment of 12,300,000 CFA francs of Loyers Loyers, 1,375,313 CFA francs of morator interest and 5,000 000 CFA francs for damages.

A rejected payment proposal

During the hearing of October 10, 2024, the tenant argued financial difficulties, explaining that he had accepted at the start of the year to pay 25 % of his debt in three months, which had put him in difficulty. He proposed a new payment plan of 5,700,000 CFA francs before the end of 2024 and an equivalent sum in 2025, ensuring that he mobilized the funds necessary to regularize his situation.

After analysis, the court concluded that non-compliance with the initial schedule constituted a serious fault justifying the termination of the lease. He therefore ordered the expulsion of the tenant and all the occupants of the premises.

The tenant was ordered to pay 12,300,000 CFA francs under unpaid rents, while morator interests have been automatically granted. On the other hand, the request for damages of the lessor was rejected. The court also ordered a provisional execution of the judgment up to half of the sums due, while refusing the execution over a minute.