Legal Definitions - rent seck

Definition: Rent seck is a type of rent that is reserved by deed but without any clause of distress. It is also known as dry rent. At common law, the relationship of lord and tenant carried with it an automatic right of distress for any rent. If no such relationship existed, there was no common law right of distress, and consequently an express clause of distress was frequently inserted when reserving the rent. A rent supported by no right of distress was known as a rent seck. Rent seck ceased to exist many years ago, for by the Landlord and Tenant Act 1730, the owners of rents seck were given the same rights of distress as a landlord has against his tenant under a lease, namely, a right to distrain as soon as the rent is in arrear.

Example: An example of rent seck would be if a landowner reserved a certain amount of money to be paid annually by the tenant for the use of the land, but did not include a clause of distress in the agreement. This means that the landowner would not have the right to seize the tenant's property if the rent was not paid on time. However, this type of rent is no longer used today.

Explanation: Rent seck was a type of rent that was used in the past, but it is no longer in use today. It was a rent that was reserved by deed but without any clause of distress, which means that the landowner did not have the right to seize the tenant's property if the rent was not paid on time. However, the Landlord and Tenant Act 1730 gave the owners of rents seck the same rights of distress as a landlord has against his tenant under a lease, which means that this type of rent is no longer used today.