Section 137 — Residential Tenancies Act 1986: Prohibited transactions

137 Prohibited transactions (1) No person shall— (a) Enter into any transaction, or make any contract or arrangement, purporting to do, whether presently or at some future time or upon the happening of any event or contingency, anything that contravenes or will contravene any of the provisions of this Act; or (b) Enter into any transaction or make any contract or arrangement, whether orally or in writing, or do anything, for the purpose of or having the effect of, in any way, whether directly or indirectly, defeating, evading, or preventing the operation of any of the provisions of this Act. (2) Requiring any person to enter into any transaction, or to make any contract or arrangement, in contravention of subsection (1) of this section is hereby declared to be an unlawful act. (3) Subject to subsection (4) of this section, any provision of any transaction, contract, or arrangement entered into in contravention of subsection (1) of this section that would have the effect of, in any way, whether directly or indirectly, defeating, evading, or preventing the operation of any of the provisions of this Act shall be of no effect. (4) All money paid and the value of any other consideration for the tenancy provided by the tenant (not being rent lawfully recoverable by the landlord) or, where the transaction takes the form of an option to purchase the premises to which the transaction relates, by the person on whom the option to purchase is conferred, shall be recoverable as a debt due to the tenant or prospective purchaser by the landlord. Compare: Residential Tenancies Act, 1978-1981 (South Australia),

s 89(3)