Guides / Protecting your property

How to rent out your house in Pakistan while you are abroad

Protecting your property6 min readLast checked 22 October 2026

Before you find a tenant

• Decide what you want: a family for years, or a short let.
• Fix the house first. Leaks, locks and wiring are easier to sort before someone lives there.
• Take photos of every room (see the inventory section below).
• Decide who will be your person on the spot, for keys, repairs and receiving the rent.

Choosing a tenant

1. Meet them, or have someone you trust meet them. A video call is better than nothing.
2. Ask for CNIC copies and a phone number. Ask where they work and where they lived before.
3. Ask for a reference from a past landlord or a known person, and actually call it.
4. Ask who will live in the house. The tenant you meet may not be everyone who moves in.
5. Be careful with someone who wants to move in at once and pay nothing up front.

What the written agreement should say

Ask a local lawyer or a careful property dealer to draft it, and read every line yourself. Cover at least:

• Names and CNIC numbers of owner and tenant, and the house address.
• Monthly rent, the day it is due, and how it is paid.
• The security deposit, and when and how it is returned.
• The start date and the end date, and how much notice each side must give.
• Who pays electricity, gas, water and any society charges.
• Who pays for small repairs and who pays for big ones.
• Whether the tenant may sublet. Most owners say no.
• That you or your person may inspect the house, with notice, at set times.
• That the tenant will hand back the house in the state shown by the photos, apart from normal wear.

Both sides sign, with witnesses, and each keeps a copy. Keep a scan.

Register the tenant with the police

In Punjab, the police say the Punjab Information of Temporary Residents Act 2015 requires owners, tenants and property dealers to register tenant details. Their page says you can use the Tenant Registration System website (trs.punjabpolice.gov.pk), or go to a police station or Khidmat Markaz with copies of both CNICs, recent photographs of owner and tenant, and the rent agreement (checked 22 October 2026). If you are abroad, your representative may be able to do this for you, but ask the police office what they will accept.

For a house in Islamabad, the Islamabad Police page says tenant registration is compulsory and can be done by the tenant or the owner, at a police Khidmat Markaz or station, or through the online form. It lists the tenant and owner CNICs and the rent agreement among the documents, and a fee of Rs. 500 paid at the counter, with processing of about one working day (checked 22 October 2026). Fees change, so confirm at the office.

The move-in photo inventory

On or just before the handover day, photograph or film every room, wall, ceiling, floor, fitting, cupboard and appliance, and the meters with readings. Make a short written list of what is in the house and its condition, and have the tenant sign and date it. Put the date and place on the photos. At move-out, repeat the same photos and compare. This is the best protection for your deposit, and for the tenant too.

Collecting the rent

• Ask for rent by bank transfer, so there is a record. Avoid cash handed to a relative with nothing written down.
• Send a short receipt message each month.
• Act on the first late payment, politely and in writing. Waiting makes it harder.
• Raise rent only as your agreement allows, and in writing.

Regular checks

Check the house two or three times a year, more at the beginning. Look for damage, extra people living there, sub-letting, new building work and unpaid bills. Give the tenant notice, as the agreement says. Use the same room-by-room photos each time.

Ending a tenancy

1. Give written notice as the agreement says, and keep proof you sent it.
2. Book a handover day. Walk through together with the move-in photos.
3. Read the meters, collect keys, and settle the final bills.
4. Return the deposit as agreed, less any proven damage or unpaid bills, with a short written list of deductions.
5. If the tenant will not leave or will not pay, speak to a local lawyer early about next steps. Do not use force or send people to push them out.

Common disputes

• The deposit: damage claimed with no starting photos.
• Bills left unpaid, then charged to the owner or the meter.
• Repairs: who pays, and what counts as small.
• A tenant who stays after the end date.
• Extra people or a business using the house without your knowledge.
• Rent increases with no written notice.

Common mistakes

• Renting on a handshake with no signed agreement.
• Skipping the police registration.
• No photos before move-in.
• Letting one relative handle everything with no checks.
• Leaving the same rent for years because it is awkward to raise.
• Ignoring a late payment until it is three months late.

Urdu glossary

Last checked: 22 October 2026. Rules change; confirm with the office or a lawyer before acting.