Municipalities use in certain situations additional agreements between landlord and tenant. These are agreements that are in addition to the rental agreement. The use of supplementary agreements in municipalities has arisen as a result of perceived challenges related to municipal tenants who have substance abuse problems or serious concomitant substance abuse and mental disorders (ROP disorders).
Oslo Economics has earlier this year conducted a knowledge acquisition on the use of additional agreements on behalf of the Ministry of Local Government and Modernization. The purpose was to map the municipalities’ use of additional agreements when renting out housing to people with substance abuse problems or ROP disorders.
Of the 24 municipalities that were interviewed in the survey, we find that 15 of these use additional agreements as of today. Municipalities that do not use supplementary agreements state that this is due to the fact that they perceive the legislation as unclear.
The municipalities have somewhat mixed experiences with the use of supplementary agreements. Normally, however, the municipalities consider the supplementary agreements to be useful. Several municipalities point out that the supplementary agreements help to ensure better living conditions for the tenant, partly because the agreement makes it easier for the municipality to assist the user with housing-related challenges. This is because the agreements often contain specific conditions for follow-up in the home. The municipalities also state that the supplementary agreements are a useful tool for better dialogue with the tenant, as well as to remind the tenant of the rules they agreed on when moving in if problems arise.
The report also shows that there is a need for further clarification. Several municipalities that use supplementary agreements point out that this is an area that is currently not sufficiently regulated, and call for a clearer framework for the use of these agreements.
The entire report can be read on the ministry’s page here .
