Backing out of an apartment lease before moving in?

Question

We signed a lease on a property and did the move-in walk through, where they agreed to replace various counters, replace flooring for us to move in. The repairs were not made, and we never moved in. Can we break this lease as we never moved in although they gave us keys?

Answer 1

Before you break the lease put things in writing; was the walk through in writing

Hopefully 30 days have not passed. Submit a letter to the property manager and the management company indicating that the repairs have not been made. Indicate that your rent is in escrow and they have 15 days to make the repair (if you really want to live there) or if you are breaking the lease because the repairs discussed and agreed to in your verbal contract were not taken care of. Indicate you will return the keys on a specific date within 10 days of letter. request the return of any deposit as well

Mail this letter via certified mail, keep a copy for yourself

Answer 2

If they agreed to the repairs then technically, yes you can, because they violated the agreement. Hopefully it is in writing though, as you might need to prove this. Typically, if they try to sue you for the lease they can only go after any income that they have lost not the whole amount of the lease. The actual amount will depend on your local laws.

Answer 3

You shouldn't have to worry about breaking the lease because they have already breached it. I used to be a realtor. There should be a dead line on the lease that you signed for all matters to be taken care of. If the improvements were not made by the date, probably your move in date, you are no longer obligated to that contract. Read through your lease for details.

Answer 4

Absolutely, if you never occupied the property you should be able to break the lease, they didn't do any repairs. I did it before and got my deposit back too.