What records should a letting agency keep of a lease renewal?

Renewal disputes are almost always disputes about timing and about what was communicated. The record that resolves them is a chronological one.

• The date the landlord was asked for renewal instructions, and the instruction received.
• The date and content of the expiry notice sent to the tenant, including any material changes disclosed.
• The offer put to the tenant and the tenant's response.
• The final signed addendum, together with a record of each signature — who signed, when, and from what address.
• Any escalation or fallback taken because a party did not respond.

Re-Lease writes each of these as an event against the lease, so the workflow history is the audit trail rather than something assembled afterwards from an inbox.

The Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 applies to all of this. Under Re-Lease's standard arrangement the agency is the responsible party for its landlords' and tenants' personal information and Re-Lease acts as an operator, processing it on the agency's documented instructions and only to provide the renewal service. POPIA's minimality principle also means records should be kept for as long as the purpose and any retention obligation require, and no longer.

Disclaimer: This is general information about South African lease-renewal procedure, not legal advice. Dates are calculated from the information you provide and from published public holidays. Check them against your lease and take your own legal advice before acting.