Question:
Hello, does putting a “no sub-rental” clause in a rental contract cause a problem for selling chametz? I know that my rav rents (if a renter is selling the chometz) the area under the chametz to the goy.
Answer:
There would be no problem in this, because the clause refers to sub-letting to somebody else who will live in the property, and not as a technical method of making an acquisition in Jewish Law. This applies to contracts which do not permit the tenant to sub-let the property.
However, if the wording on the contract is that “the rights of the tenant cannot be transferred,” rather than “the property may not be sub-let,” it is possible that the clause would be binding even concerning the sale enacted by the rav. In this case, special permission should be asked from the landlord.
