Back home   |   Bookmark   |   Start page   |   Site map    
Services
News
Channels
Home & Family
Leisure
Technology
Business
Science
Site Search
Free email




When you can break a lease

Nate Rodnay
When you sign a lease, you're agreeing to certain conditions. You will pay the required amount of rent, park your car in the right spot, put your garbage out on certain days. Your landlord is also agreeing to abide by certain rules. Your lease is your contract, and both sides are responsible for keeping their commitments.

If your landlord isn't keeping up with his side of the agreement, it's within your rights to do something about it. Here are some situations in which the landlord is negligent and it is perfectly acceptable – and legal – to break your lease.

You are without water or heat. You've paid your rent and your utility bills, but you're sitting in your apartment with four sweaters on and you haven't been able to take a shower at your place for a few days. This demands immediate action. It's not like a light bulb that needs to be replaced or a burner on your stove that's not working. If your landlord doesn't fix it, he's breaking your agreement.

There are a few things you can do here. If you've called and complained and nothing is being done, you can call a repair person and have them fix it. You then submit the bill to your landlord and take that amount out of your rent. Say the repair costs $250 and your rent is $750. Submit the bill and $500 rent payment.

You can also leave. He's not meeting his obligation, so you're not obligated to stay. Just make sure everything is documented and you've given him ample time to get repairs done. If the apartment is uninhabitable – i.e., no heat in the winter – you can claim constructive eviction. This means that the apartment was not livable, so you were forced to move. You stop paying rent and must leave the property.

If you are having problems like these with your landlord, it's a good idea to contact Legal Aide or a tenants' rights association in your area. Legal Aide is income-based, so you can get expert advice affordably. Don't stay in a situation that is unhealthy or unsafe if you can possibly help it.


About the Author
©2006 All rights reserved
Marvist Consulting is an offshore knowledge process outsourcing (KPO) company and is a leader in providing offshore search engine marketing and offshore business research services. Marvist Consulting Private Limited is the offshore delivery center and virtual office for Marvist Consulting LLC - a USA based marketing services company located in Edison.

  Click here to see related videos
Quotes
Ive always wanted to be a scientist. That way, I could get a bunch of grants and do research into whether money can really buy happiness.
Kyannke.

Ive always wanted to be somebody, but I see now I should have been more specific.
Lily Tomlin

Writers
If you are a writer and want to see your article published at Theallineed.com, just click here to submit.

Info
Today...
In the news...
Top UN officials call for release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
Top United Nations officials today expressed their disappointment over the decision by the Government of Myanmar to extend the house arrest of pro-democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
What programming languages do you know well and use frequently?
C/C++
Java
Visual Basic
Pascal/Delphi
Other
 
Things to ponder
If a turtle doesn't have a shell, is he homeless or naked?

Did you know...
Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times.

Quote of the day
To avoid situations in which you might make mistakes may be the biggest mistake of all.
Peter McWilliams

Featured article
Theft prevention accessories for PDAs
Losing a PDA through theft is one of the biggest challenges owners of personal data devices face. As the prices and capabilities of theses units increases, so does the market for stolen PDAs, year after year.

 
© Lexur