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harinath1976 · Apr 8, 2009, 11:27 AM

Hi!

I moved to a new apartment in Richardson, TX (Sweetwaterranch) and leased for 12 months and there is 60 days notice period. We are about to finish 5th month of our lease and all of a sudden I lost job, after great difficulty I found one in Columbia MD and moved to MD. We informed apartment community and asked them to market my apartment on their own in writing. But apartment community is asking us to pay for the rest of the lease period until somebody move in. I don't have money to pay the rent in two places

Please advice how to get rid of this.

Thanks

Hari

excon · Apr 10, 2009, 07:37 AM

Hello Hari:

You get rid of it by them renting your apartment. That's the short and sweet of it. You DID make a legal commitment. Why should you be able to get out of it? Certainly, if the dishwasher broke, you'd hold THEM to the contract, wouldn't you?? Yes, of course, you would.

What you SHOULD have done, is work out a lease termination fee BEFORE you left. Right now, you're at their mercy. You're not there to see if they're really trying to rent it, and you're obligated to pay every month. If you don't pay, they'll sue you. You'll either have to come back to defend it (which you can't), or let them win by default. Then your bank account will be seized and your wages garnished.

What I would try now, is a cash offer of two months rent to make it go away. They might or might not take it.

excon

ScottGem · Apr 10, 2009, 07:57 AM

Not only did you break your lease without permission, you didn't give them appropriate notice that you were moving.

So yes you are required to pay the rental until they find a new tenant. You can try to sublet or find a new tenant on your own. Or you can offer them a buyout.

But if you don't pay what you owe they will sue and win.