Can i legally terminate lease?

Question

My landlord sent me a 3 day eviction notice because i with held my rent per my attorney advice because he has failed to do repairs (major)and do the extermination.Now hes claiming I breached the lease.He has been given 2 oppurtunitys to do the repairs.My question is since he sent this 3 day notice can i legally terminate my lease?I want to move because of the infestation and i have 2 small children to worry about but i also dont want an eviction.If i pay him then i acknowledge the problems and are ok with them,but if i dont then hes going to evict.My lawyer wants another 1600 that i dont have,so its like im stuck in a hard place.Any info i would appreciate thanks.Im in Florida by the way

Answer 1

Unfortunately, your landlord is correct and your lawyer gave you bad advice. You cannot terminate the lease based on HIS 3 day notice. He will have to go to court to start eviction proceedings. I sympathize totally with your situation . You might have to pay this month only and then follow what I wrote in this order
1)Send a CERTIFIED LETTER to your landlord outlining the issues and that he has 7 days from receipt of the letter to comply and fix the problems. Also in the letter you should indicate that IF he fails to fix the problems,he will be in breach of contract and ALL monies will be paid into an escrow account which will be held by the County Courts office- civil division until he fulfills his obligations to repair the problems with the dwelling or else he will have to allow you to break the lease with no penalties and return any security deposits etc he is holding for you.
2) If he fails to comply, then just go straight to your local county courthouse to the Civil division and ask what papers you needed to file in order for an account to be opened and the landlord will be served by the courts. This is to prevent him from saying you did not pay rent and therefore will have to evict you. You will cut that avenue off from him.
Its time consuming but it should not cost you 1/10 of what that shyster lawyer is trying to squeeze out of you
3) Report that lawyer to the FL Bar Association. He knows fully well that in the State of FL , you CANNOT withhold rent.
4)What your lawyer has done is put you in a position where he is trying to make it more profiable for himself at your expense.
The lawyer should have sent the letter advising the landlord that rent monies would be deposited with the courts until he complies
It seems to me that your lawyer might not have done this.
Your filing the paperwork will probably amount to about $80-$100 depending on your county ( might be a little bit more). Check their website or better yet call and ask to speak with someone in the civil division and let them help you file the necessary paperwork
5) This shyster wants that $1600 as a retainer so that when the landlord files for eviction and you get served he will "go over" the paper work to see if the landlord made a "mistake" so he can get it dismissed and he makes a nice chunk of change for doing nothing but read a filing

Answer 2

I agree with the above answer.

You need to work this out with your landolord or prepare to face both an eviction and a judgment for the past-due (and possibly future) rent.