We have a twelve month lease that has just expired. We had just gone through a foreclosure and had to move immediately. The landlord used a realtor to market and prepare the lease. The rental property was advertised at $1550 per month. We had already committed to rent it verbally and provided a $1550 check to secure the property. Approximately 2 days before signing the lease we were informed that, because of our foreclosure, we would have to pay $1800 per month rent and an additional month's rent in advance. Because there was not enough time to find another rental property and go through the application process. We had no choice but to sign the lease and accept the terms.

Also, were not informed about problems with the house and it took over 8 months to discover what was causing them. They caused us to have to pay utility bills in excess of what would normally be expected. We tried to reduce our usage but they only went down a small amount.

I have found the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act but it seems to apply only to individual landlords with 10 or more rental properties. I'm having difficulties determining our rights.

We have also found out that the landlord is trying to do a short sell of the property. Because of that we have withheld a portion of the last month's rent we are obligated to pay because we fear that we won't be able to recover our damage deposit. Because of his situation we also fear that he won't determine it's application fairly.

First of all, can anyone point us to where we can find documentation of our rights? Secondly, any advice regarding this would be appreciated.

Where to look for your rights is in your lease. The lease should spell out everything.

You don't have the right to withhold rent because you fear you won't get your deposit back.

You got taken advantage of in the beginning, but since you agreed to it, you have little recourse.