the new roommate and i never signed a lease together, she is a total slob, she takes my stuff without asking, i just need to get out. a friend said when my original roommate left out contract with the landlord was broken, and since he never made up a new lease with the new roommate i''m technically not under contract, is that true?
2007-10-22 08:59:50 · 5 answers · asked by madeovstars 1 in Business & Finance ➔ Renting & Real Estate
the new roommate and i never signed a lease together, she is a total slob, she takes my stuff without asking, i just need to get out. a friend said when my original roommate left out contract with the landlord was broken, and since he never made up a new lease with the new roommate i'm technically not under contract, is that true?
i really think i am better off without a roommate at this point, and want to look for a place of my own.
2007-10-22 09:12:12 · update #1
my landlord knows of the new roommate, and when she first moved in he said he would bring a revised contract with her name on it as well, he never did..
2007-10-22 09:13:20 · update #2
No. You may have violated a term of the lease by letting someone else live there, but both you and your old roommate are still subject to the lease. Does the landlord know that the new person lives there? You could argue that they implicitly agreed to void the lease and you are now a month-to-month tenant. However, they could argue that they implicitly allowed you to sublet your old roommate's rights to someone else. Have they applied a increase in rent? If so, this could be indicative that they are treating it as a new agreement.
You could also give your new roommate notice to move out, because you have no obligation to this new person, other than reasonable (read: 30 days) notice.
I am assuming that the lease term hasn't already expired. If it has, you are a month-to-month tenant and can move out at any time with 30 days notice.
I would ask the roommate (old and new) and the landlord how they would like to work it out with you. The landlord may choose to substitute the roommate in on the lease, or create a new agreement with her. There's always the option of simply breaching the lease, too.
The consequences of breach are generally a minor ding on your credit (if the landlord reports it), and you would be responsible for the rent for the period of your lease. HOWEVER, they MUST make efforts to replace you, which they can probably do almost immediately. If they do, they cannot recover from you what they make from someone else. You'd probably end up being responsible for one month rent for time after you move out.
2007-10-22 09:11:29 · answer #1 · answered by I 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can evict the new roommate if she's not on the lease. But you can't just kick her out, you're gonna have to do it by the book.
As for your lease itself, because the old roommate is still on it, he or she still has rights to the apartment or home even if no rent is being paid. You might want to see if you can terminate the existing lease and create a new one with only your name on it, because the landlord can't just remove the old roommate's name. (your landlord might wanna raise the rent, be careful)
2007-10-22 09:07:42 · answer #2 · answered by Shell Answer Man 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Check your state rental laws but, no you cannot move out without breaking the lease (which will probably cost you). The lease that you and your original room-mate signed will be in effect until both you and your first room-mate terminate the lease. In fact, you can be held liable for the fact that you are "subletting" the apartment to the new room-mate without your landlords permission. If you do terminate your lease early, both you and your ORIGINAL room-mate are held liable for the lease termination....unfortunately, that means that the new room-mate will get out cost free. By liable, I mean, financially responsible for the remaining months of the lease, cleaning fees, and/or loss of any security deposits placed.
So, if you are THAT miserable, go check with your landlord to see if you can break the lease early. Sometimes they will be willing to work with you in getting it re-rented fast and maybe holding liable for less. Good luck!!
2007-10-22 09:36:57 · answer #3 · answered by Nicki B 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Your original lease does not become invalid when one of the parties to the lease takes off. BOTH of you are still liable to fulfill the terms of that contract. Your old roomie simply allowed another to take care of her financial responsibility by moving into her old place.
If you take off now without changing anything (don't count on the landlord allowing you to terminate the lease), the landlord will probably take YOU and your old roomie to small claims court to recover damages.
2007-10-22 09:21:25 · answer #4 · answered by acermill 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes it is true. Ask your new roommate to move out, why would you have to leave if your name is on the lease?
2007-10-22 09:07:49 · answer #5 · answered by katysru19 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋