How can I get out of a lease with insane roommates?

Question

I just moved out of a 3 bedroom apt. with one roomate, leaving 2 behind. We have found people to replace us on the lease and but the married couple living in the master br wont sign papers allowing names to be switched.
I've already started paying rent on my new place and cant afford 2 rents. The complex wont allow sublets either.
The couple (they moved from china a month ago, so communication is hard) want 2 girls who will be taking my room to pay more since there are two people. They actually refuse to let them on the lease if they wont add $20 on to the rent so as to reduce the rent for the master bedroom, which is underpriced in the first place.
What can I do? To terminate the lease, the price is $2000. Would that be per occupant or per apartment, (so it would be $500 each rather than $2000?) They claim the $20 is for the principle of the matter and wont take the amount from us, (though we offered to pay them) only the new people, based on the moral of the matter.
Please help!

Hah. My roommate who moved w/ me actually SPEAKS fluent chinese. It's still been hard, because they are very selfish about this. They think they are teaching us a life lesson, when in reality they are screwing a couple of penniless college kids. The husband is actually a postdoc who makes plenty to cover their OWN apartment, but won't. Thanks for the advice though, I may use it.
The thing is, we asked them for an extra $40 when they moved in because they were a couple. I was going to take the master for 860. My situation has changed and parents have made commitments tehy aren't keeping (i.e. helping me w/ $) and I'm a freshman in college working way too much and i'm not getting any schoolwork done, so I've been forced to move to something cheaper (i'm in San Diego, so its all very pricey). Unfortunately, they won't sympathize.
Yeah... Stress.

Answer 1

there is not really anyway inless you get someone else to take it over because if you leave and break the lease then they can take you to court.

Answer 2

Who signed the actual lease? The person who signed the lease would be on the hook. If the property management arranged the whole thing then they probably could only come after you for your portion. This is a mess. If you are all on the lease then since you have already moved out just tell the selfish couple you are done and they are on their own if they don't agree to take the replacement people on ... a month or two of the lease not being paid is going to cause big issues after a while with the landlord. In the end the person or people on the lease would be on the hook, AND usually the lease hold you individually liable..which means the landlord could come after you for the whole amount... but if you have NOTHING what can they really do?

Answer 3

If you signed a lease agreement, you are contractually obligated to whatever language you and the entity (lessor) you agreed upon.
To terminated the lease is to terminate the agreement for the apartment, and all parties have to agree.
The best case for you is to discuss the matter with the roommates that you signed the agreement with to learn of a compromise.
I am a little confused about some of things you wrote, for example the number of people that were living in the apartment, was it three or four? The moral of the matter, why is the married couple concerned with the morals of two people that will solve the problem in connection with $20.00?

Answer 4

If there's a restraining order- he could stay someplace else. If he continues to be on the lease, which skill he has to pay lease even at the same time as he can't stay there. confronted with the alternative between paying lease at the same time as he's not any longer living there, or giving up the lease- maximum human beings would chosen to offer up the lease! yet you extremely prefer to bypass to court because in case you do not look- the choose is only going to brush off your declare. Your different selection is that you'll only flow out. locate someone to interchange you so as that you'll get your call off the lease. in case you do not arise with the money for to flow out on your own, you've different techniques: stay at a battered females's protect, stay with acquaintances or kin.

Answer 5

I got caught in a similiar situation a few months ago. The $2000 is probably a total fine if everyone backs out. You might be able to get around this if you can find a replacement. Read the contract and there might be able to get around the fine somehow.

Answer 6

There is no easy way to do this....
I suggest finding a person who is fluent in the dialect of Chinese that these people speak, and ask that person to tell these people that you are going to the immigration authorities and report them for immigration irregularities based on the fact that they want to blackmail you with the additional stipulations they demand...

Tell them this may not work, but that the immigration people are not going to be happy about it, and will now have them on their radar..
The Chinese culture is unlike our Western culture in that they do not respond to subtilty well. Let them know that our government frowns on their behavior, and have your interpreter tell them they'd better just let you out of your lease unless they want the authorities to become negatively aware of them immediately...
If they refuse, do it. Call immigration and ask them to visit your home and talk to the people. They may not do it, but then again they might?

These are not nice people, you do know that, I'm sure. So don't worry about offending them. They do not respect you.

Answer 7

Wow this is Henry Kissinger stuff lots of drama here. I would try to separate the drama and concentrate on the law research. To that end here from our research department:
All real estate laws explained: http://www.dre.cahwnet.gov/reftoc.htm
Small claim court information: http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/smallclaims/
STATE’S WEB SITE: http://www.dca.ca.gov/
STATE’SLANDLORD TENANT ACT: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate?WAISdocID=72145723910+1+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve
HUD – Tenant rights in California: http://www.hud.gov/local/ca/renting/tenantrights.cfm
Pamphlet from the State of California on Landlords and Tenants:
http://www.dca.ca.gov/legal/landlordbook/
Private Attorney’s Website on Tenant/Landlord issues: http://www.caltenantlaw.com/
State bar Association: http://www.calbar.ca.gov/state/calbar/calbar_home.jsp
California Civil code - CONTRACTS – Sections 1619 – 1632: http://www.lectlaw.com/files/bul15.htm
Lots of research but knowledge is power and luck favors the prepared mind.
Buena Suerte

Answer 8

i would talk to the manager but i think that it could be split but i am not completly sure