THE LAND AND HOUSE RENT CONTROL ORDINANCE

Article 1. The objective of this Ordinance shall be to contribute toward the stabilization of the national economic life by controlling land and house rent.

Article 2. Land-rent in this Ordinance shall mean the rent on leased land or land upon which superficies have been created for the purpose to possess the building thereon (hereinafter called leased land). House-rent shall mean the rent on building or a portion of it which has been rented (hereinafter called rented house).

Article 3. Landlord of any leased land or rented house (hereinafter called landlord) shall not make contract or receive any land-rent or house-rent exceeding the ceiling amount or the authorized amount.

Article 4. With regard to the leased land or rented house which rent on September 30, 1946 (hereinafter called freeze date) is authorized by several paragraph of Paragraph i Article 3 of the Land and House Rent Control Ordinance No. 678, 1940 (including the land or house rent considered as applicable to each paragraph of Paragraph 1 Article 3 of the same Ordinance in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 2 Article 4, Paragraph 2 Article 6, Paragraph 2 Article 7, Article 8 and Article 22 of the same Ordinance), the land or house rent on the freeze date shall be the ceiling rent on the leased land or rented house concerned. The provision of the preceding paragraph shall not be applied to the rent on a portion of building.

Article 5. With respect to the ceiling house-rent unjust or inequitable, the Director-General of Price Board may fix a uniform adjusting percentage basis of prefecture wide or city wide corresponding to the time of construction. In furtherance of the preceding paragraph, the amount of the ceiling rent adjusted on a uniform percentage basis (in the case it is exceeding the amount fixed by the Director-General of Price Board, the amount fixed by the same Director-General shall be prior to the higher ceiling rent) shall be the ceiling amount of the house-rent concerned. The determination of prefecture or city and the uniform percentage in Paragraph 1 and of the amount to be fixed by the Director-General of Price Board in the preceding paragraph shall be made by notification.

Article 6. When the landlord is to make contract of tenancy for the first time after the enforcement of this Ordinance in the case there exists no ceiling amount on land or house rent, he shall have the approval of the local governor on the amount according to the provisions of the Cabinet Orders. It is the same with the house-rent on a portion of building on and after October 1, 1946 as provided in Paragraph 2 Article 4. The land or house rent approved according to the provision of the preceding paragraph shall be considered to be the authorized amount. The Director-General of Price Board shall instruct the approving basis grounded on the provision of Paragraph 1 to the local governor. The local governor shall grant the approval of Paragraph 1 according to the basis of the preceding paragraph. The provision of Paragraph 1 shall not be applied to the land or house rent decided by a trial, judicial compromise or mediation.

Article 7. Landlord, in the cases where there exists any reason applicable to one of the following paragraphs, may apply to the local governor for the approval of increase of the ceiling amount or the authorized amount of the land or house rent according to the provisions of the Cabinet Orders. 1. Cases where a major improvement was made in the dwelling unit. 2. In respect to the ceiling rent on land or house, cases where a special relationship existed between tenant and landlord such as the tenant and landlord being relative, which resulted in a rental remarkably low (hereinafter called tenant). The amount approved according to the provision of the preceding paragraph shall be considered as the authorized land or house rent.

Article 8. The local governor, in the cases where there exists any reason applicable to one of the following paragraphs, he may decrease the ceiling amount or the authorized amount of the land or house rent either on his authority or by the application of the tenant according to the Cabinet Orders. 1. Cases where the amount of the land or house rent is considerably unfair in comparison with the land or house rent charged for the neighbouring and similar lands. 2. Cases where the landlord fails to maintain services and conditions of the dwelling unit which resulted in getting worse condition of it. The provision of Paragraph 2 in the preceding Article shall be applied to the preceding paragraph mutatis mutandis.

Article 9. In the case the local governor deems it necessary where he is to give the approval stipulated for in Article 6 or the preceding clause, he may approve after varying the conditions of tenancy in the application or may place a condition or restriction on his approval.

Article 10. The amount of the land or house rent decided by a trial, judicial compromise or mediation shall be taken for the authorized amount of the land or house rent.

Article 11. The provisions of Article 3, Article 4 and Article 6 to Article 10 shall be applied mutatis mutandis to the deposit for rent, the share of repairing expenses, costs of tatami, fixture and other relatives to furnishings, the public expenses of a boarding house, an apartment house and the other similar tenement, the conditions of payment of land or house rent and the premium to be paid by the tenant to the landlord and other conditions of tenancy affecting financial interests.

Article 12. Landlord, in any name, shall not act to avoid the prohibitions based on the provision of Article 3 (including the case being applied by the preceding article mutatis mutandis).

Article 13. Landlord shall neither contractor receive anything other than payment in cash by way of land or house rent.

Article 14. Landlord shall report the ceiling amount or the authorized amount of the land or house rent to the local governor according to the provisions of the Cabinet Orders through the mayor, the headman of community concerned. On accepting the report mentioned in the preceding paragraph, he shall enter it into a rental register kept in the city-house or community's office without delay and offer it for public perusal.

Article 15. When the local governor is to give the approval according to the provisions of Article 7 and Article 8, he shall hear the opinion of the Local Land and House Rent Investigation Committee.

Article 16. When the local governor deems it necessary, he may order the landlord to prepare a book concerning the land or house rent, or with regard to a boarding house, an apartment house or any other tenement similar thereto, he may order that the notice pertaining to the house-rent and other conditions of tenancy be posted in the conspicuous place of the rented house.

Article 17. When the local governor deems it necessary, he may collect reports on the leased land or rented house from the landlords or tenants, or may cause the competent government officials to visit the leased land, rented house and other places and to inspect the condition thereof, or the leases of the leased land and rented house, books and other objects.

Article 18. Any person who is applicable to one of the following items shall be liable to a penal servitude of not more than five (5) years or a fine not exceeding ¥50,000. 1. Any person who is against the provision of Article 3 (including the case being applied by Article 11 mutatis mutandis). 2. Any person who makes contract of tenancy to receive or receives the land or house rent without being authorized according to the provision of Paragraph 1 Article 6 (including the case being applied by Article 11 mutatis mutandis). 3. Any person who is against the provision of Article 11. Any person committed the crime mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall be liable to both a penal servitude and a fine as the nature of the crime.

Article 19. Any person who is against the provision of Article 13 shall be liable to a penal servitude of not more than three (3) years or a fine not exceeding ¥30,000.

Article 20. Any person who is applicable to one of the following paragraph shall be liable to a penal servitude of not more than one (1) year or a fine not exceeding ¥10,000, 1. Any person who fails to report or makes false or misleading report contrary to the provision of Paragraph 1 of Article 14. 2. Any person who fails to make a book or enters false entries into a book or neglects to post or posts false entries contrary to the directions based on the provision of Article 16. 3. Any person who fails to inform or makes false information provided for in the provision of Article 17. 4. Any person who refuses, abstructs or avoids the execution of inspection prescribed for in the provision of Article 17.

Article 21. In the case where any representative of jurisdical person, or any proxy and employee of juridical person or persons and other workers acted against the provisions of Paragraph 1 Article 18, Article 19 or Item 1 to Item 3 of the preceding article concerning the business of the juridical person or persons, the juridical person or the persons shall be liable to a fine of each of these articles respectively as well as the violators.

Article 22. The city, city-house or headman of community so-called in this Ordinance shall be taken for the Tokyo Metropolitan brough consisted of wards or the ward, ward-office or headman of ward in the city of Kyoto, Osaka, Yokohama, Kobe and Nagoya.

Article 23. This Ordinance shall not be applied to the leased land or rented house of which the State or the local government is its landlord.

Supplementary Provisions:

Article 24. The present Ordinance shall come into force as from October 1, 1946.

Article 25. The provision of Article 10 (including the case being applied by Article 11 mutatis mutandis) shall not be applied to the land or house rent and conditions of tenancy decided by a trial, or judicial compromise or mediations before the enforcement of this Ordinance.

Article 26. In the case of the dwelling unit comprised in the tenancy to receive any thing other than payment in cach by way if the land or house rent on the freeze date, it shall be considered to have no ceiling amount.