Selling a Flat with a Tenant in Poland – Is It Possible and How to Do It Safely

Yes, a flat with a tenant can be sold without the tenant's consent – the lease does not expire and the buyer steps into it in place of the previous owner (art. 678 of the Civil Code). Importantly, for a residential unit that the tenant already occupies, the buyer cannot terminate the tenancy simply because they bought the flat (art. 692 of the Civil Code). Below we explain what happens to the lease, deposit and rent, how to organise viewings and who benefits most from such an offer – with the example of a studio flat in Wroclaw.

Key facts

• After the sale the buyer steps into the tenancy in place of the seller – on the same terms (art. 678 § 1 of the Civil Code).
• The rules on termination of a lease by the buyer do not apply to residential units, unless the tenant has not yet taken possession (art. 692 of the Civil Code).
• An owner who wants to live in the flat can terminate an ordinary tenancy no earlier than half a year ahead (with replacement premises) or 3 years ahead (without them) – art. 11 para. 4–5 of the Tenant Rights Protection Act.
• Deposit: in an ordinary tenancy up to 12 times the monthly rent, in an occasional tenancy up to 6 times; refund within a month of the unit being vacated (art. 6 and 19a of the Act).
• The Act gives the owner the right to enter the unit only in an emergency and for agreed inspections (art. 10) – for viewings by buyers you need the tenant's consent.

Can you sell a flat with a tenant without their consent?

Yes. You do not need the tenant's consent to list the flat, sign a preliminary contract or a notarial deed (akt notarialny). As a rule the tenant also has no right of pre-emption over the flat they live in, unless the parties themselves wrote such a right into the lease.

The effect of the sale is described in art. 678 § 1 of the Civil Code: the buyer steps into the tenancy in place of the seller. The contract continues in its existing wording – with the same rent, term and termination rules; only the landlord changes.

You tell the buyer about the tenancy from the start – best of all already in the advert ("let until…, rent… PLN"). The lease, the handover protocol and proof of payments should go into the set of documents, alongside those on the list in the article selling a flat step by step.

The tenant and the new owner – can the buyer terminate the tenancy?

The general rule of art. 678 of the Civil Code allows the buyer to terminate the tenancy observing statutory notice periods, unless the contract was concluded for a fixed term, in writing, with a certain date, and the item was handed over to the tenant (§ 2). For flats the key provision is art. 692 of the Civil Code: the rules on termination of a lease by the buyer do not apply to the letting of residential units, unless the tenant has not yet taken possession of the unit.

If the tenant already lives in the flat, the purchase is therefore not grounds for termination. The new owner has the same options as the previous one: cases under the contract and under the Tenant Rights Protection Act – e.g. for rent arrears of at least three full payment periods (after a written warning and setting an additional one-month deadline), for using the unit contrary to the contract despite a written reprimand, or for subletting without written consent (art. 11 para. 2).

If the buyer wants to live in the flat and the tenancy was concluded for an indefinite period, the Act provides for termination "for own needs": no later than half a year ahead if the tenant has somewhere to live under the conditions of replacement premises or the owner provides such premises (art. 11 para. 4), or no later than 3 years ahead without replacement premises (para. 5). The notice must be in writing and state the reason. If after a 3-year notice the owner does not move into the unit (or moves out before half a year has passed), the tenant may return or claim the difference in rent for a year (para. 6).

Selling a flat and the lease – what happens with each type of contract

The buyer will ask above all: when will the flat be vacant? The answer depends on the type of contract.

Type of lease	What happens to it after the sale	When the buyer can end it
Ordinary fixed-term tenancy	The buyer steps into the contract until the end of the term (art. 678 § 1, art. 692 of the Civil Code)	On expiry of the term; earlier only in the cases set out in the contract (art. 673 § 3 of the Civil Code) and for breaches under art. 11 para. 2 of the Act (including 3 periods of arrears, subletting without consent)
Ordinary indefinite-term tenancy	The buyer steps into the contract; tenant protection unchanged	On the grounds in art. 11 of the Act: for breaches – one month ahead to the end of a month; for own needs – 6 months (with replacement premises) or 3 years ahead
Occasional tenancy (max 10 years)	The buyer steps into the contract until the end of the term	On expiry of the term or in the cases set out in the contract; for breaches under art. 11 para. 2 points 1–3 (art. 19e); after it ends – a demand to vacate with a deadline of at least 7 days (art. 19d)
Institutional tenancy	The buyer steps into the contract; applies to a sale by a business letting out units	On expiry of the term or in the cases set out in the contract; a demand to vacate with a deadline of at least 14 days (art. 19i)
The tenant has not yet taken possession	The buyer steps into the contract	May terminate the tenancy observing statutory notice periods (art. 678 § 1, art. 692 of the Civil Code) – for a unit with rent payable monthly the Act provides 3 months to the end of a month (art. 688 of the Civil Code)

Occasional tenancy causes the fewest problems: the buyer knows when the contract will expire, and if the tenant resists there is a simplified path to vacating the unit. We described the details of this contract in the article occasional and institutional tenancy. The tenant, however, submitted to enforcement in favour of the previous owner – the buyer needs an enforcement clause in their own favour as successor, showing the transfer of rights e.g. by the notarial deed of sale (art. 788 § 1 of the Code of Civil Procedure). The rules do not state directly whether the new owner should notify the tax office of the contract again – this point is worth discussing with the notary at the signing.

Deposit, rent and tax – how to settle them at the notarial deed

The deposit secures the landlord's claims on the day the unit is vacated and is refundable within a month of the unit being vacated or of the tenant acquiring its ownership, after deducting the landlord's claims (art. 6 para. 4; for an occasional tenancy – art. 19a para. 5). The rules do not directly settle how the seller and buyer should account for the deposit between themselves. Since, however, it is the buyer who will be the landlord on the day the tenancy ends, the safest course is to hand the deposit over to them – by transfer or through a price reduction – and to record this in the notarial deed together with its amount.

• Rent – set in the deed the day from which it belongs to the buyer (usually the day the unit is handed over, i.e. the landlord's rights are transferred), and apportion the rent for the current month proportionally.
• Notifying the tenant – send a joint letter from the seller and buyer with the date of the change of owner and the new account number for payments.
• Documents for the buyer – the contract with annexes, the protocol, proof of payments, and for an occasional tenancy – the tenant's notarial deed and confirmation of notification to the tax office.
• Rental tax – you settle revenue up to the date of sale, the buyer from the takeover date. We described the flat-rate tax rules (8.5% up to PLN 100 thousand of revenue, 12.5% on the excess) in the article on rental income tax.

Viewings of a flat with a tenant – right of entry and good practice

Without the tenant's consent the owner may enter the unit only in an emergency, in the presence of the police or municipal guard (art. 10 para. 1); otherwise the tenant gives access to the flat at an agreed time for an inspection or necessary work (para. 3). Viewings for buyers are not on that list, and the tenant's right to use the unit is protected like ownership (art. 690 of the Civil Code). Viewings therefore require an agreement with the tenant.

• Agree in writing fixed windows for viewings (e.g. two a week) and a way of giving advance notice.
• Offer compensation for the inconvenience, e.g. a rent reduction for the months of the sale – this is cheaper than weeks of the listing standing idle.
• Limit the number of visits: good photos and a floor plan in the advert, a virtual walk-through, an open day for several interested people at once.
• In new leases add a clause on giving access to the unit for viewings in the event of a sale.

A sale with a tenant usually takes longer – the pool of buyers is narrower and viewings depend on the tenant. We describe the time frames of the stages in the article how long it takes to sell a flat.

Have a let flat and wondering whether to sell it with the tenant or wait until the end of the contract? We will help you value the flat and carry out the sale – we will match the strategy to the type of lease and reach buyers for whom the tenant is an asset, not an obstacle.

Selling a let flat – who benefits and how it affects the price

A flat with a tenant is two different products for two groups of buyers. For a person buying for their own use the tenancy is an obstacle: they cannot move in at once, and with an indefinite-term contract may wait even 3 years. They therefore expect a discount or skip the offer.

For an investor it is the opposite: the flat earns from day one, and the tenant has a known payment history. That is why an offer "with a tenant" should be aimed mainly at investors and presented in the language of rate of return – as we calculate in the article on rental yield of a flat.

Example: a studio flat in Wroclaw with a tenant

Let us assume a studio flat of 32.4 m² (the median size of studio flats in our offer in Wroclaw). We calculate rent using the average NBP rental rate for six large cities (including Wroclaw) for the first quarter of 2026 – PLN 67.5/m², excluding running costs: 32.4 × 67.5 = PLN 2 187 a month, i.e. PLN 26 244 a year. The 8.5% flat-rate tax is PLN 2 231, leaving PLN 24 013.

Price of the flat with the tenant	Gross yield (annual rent / price)	After 8.5% flat-rate tax
560 000 PLN	4.7%	4.3%
600 000 PLN	4.4%	4.0%
640 000 PLN	4.1%	3.8%

The investor will compare this with the alternative: a new studio flat from a developer. According to TM Invest offer data as of 27.09.2026, the median price of a studio flat in Wroclaw is PLN 595 638. To that add fit-out – at an indicative PLN 2 200/m² (the middle of the range from the article how much does it cost to finish a flat) that is about PLN 71 280 – and a few months without income: with 3 months of work and a month to find a tenant that is about PLN 8 750 of lost rent. In total a new flat "ready to let" comes to about PLN 676 thousand – that difference is your argument in negotiations, even if the flat is older.

For a buyer purchasing for their own use, on the other hand, the same studio flat with an occasional tenancy expiring in a year is worth less than an identical empty one – they must wait and accept the risk that the tenant will not move out voluntarily. You will find the new studio flats the buyer will compare you with in the list of new developments in Wroclaw.

Risks when selling a flat with a tenant and how to limit them

• Oral or incomplete contract – put the contract or an annex in writing with the current rent and deposit.
• Tenant arrears – the buyer will ask about the payment history; show statements and agree in the deed who pursues arrears from before the sale.
• Deposit not agreed – without a clause in the deed, a dispute over its refund may come back to you after the tenancy ends.
• A promise of an "empty flat" – do not put into the preliminary contract a date for handing over a vacant flat unless you are sure the tenant will move out; failure to keep it may cost you the deposit paid as earnest money (zadatek). The rules on earnest money are described in the article on the preliminary agreement for the sale of a flat.

Selling through an agent? Agree in the contract who contacts the tenant – more in the article exclusive or open estate agency agreement.

Frequently asked questions

Summary

Selling a flat with a tenant is legal and does not require the tenant's consent, but the buyer takes over the lease with all that comes with it – for a residential unit they cannot terminate it simply because they bought the flat. Check the type and term of the contract, put the documents and deposit in order, set the rules for viewings and decide whether you are targeting an investor or a buyer for their own use.

Want to sell a let flat without downtime and disputes over the deposit? Contact us about valuation and sale of your flat – on the market since 2016, we operate in Warsaw and Wroclaw.

Legal position as of September 2026. The calculations are indicative, and the rent and prices in the example are assumptions based on NBP data and the TM Invest catalogue. The article is not legal or tax advice – before selling a flat with a tenant it is worth having the lease and the wording of the deed reviewed by a lawyer or notary.

Sources

• Civil Code – consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 795 (art. 81, 673, 678, 679, 688, 690, 692).
• Act on the protection of tenants' rights, the municipal housing stock and amending the Civil Code – consolidated text Dz.U. 2023 item 725 (art. 6, 10, 11, 19a–19e, 19i).
• Code of Civil Procedure – consolidated text Dz.U. 2026 item 468 (art. 788).
• NBP – Information on housing prices and the residential property market in the first quarter of 2026 (rental rates).
• Settling rental revenue – recorded flat-rate tax – podatki.gov.pl.
• Flat prices: TM Invest investment catalogue, as of 27.09.2026.