Ask Me Help Desk - Can I break a lease with only 2 months left in lease

I had a leak in my apt which ended up being from the 2nd floor's a.c. it took my landlord 2 weeks to figure out where it was coming from and it was a pretty heavy leak so my walls got pretty flooded. How can I break my lease.. I only have 2 months left and I have mold in my hallways and in my pantry. If they were do what they are SUPPOSED to do they would have to knock down a wall and rebuild it. Which would take a least a month. My landlord is determined not to let me out. What do I do?

Quote:

Originally Posted by melissa1985

I had a leak in my apt which ended up being from the 2nd floor's a.c. it took my landlord 2 weeks to figure out where it was coming from and it was a pretty heavy leak so my walls got pretty flooded. how can i break my lease..i only have 2 months left and i have mold in my hallways and in my pantry. if they were do what they are SUPPOSED to do they would have to knock down a wall and rebuild it. which would take a least a month. my landlord is determined not to let me out. what do i do?

OK, when you rent a place from someone, I believe by experience and my knowledge that it is bad to break a lease. Because the two of you signed an agreement or contract. If you break your lease then I believe your landlord can keep your security deposit or something like that and that might hurt your credit, so when you go to get another place they might see you had broken a lease before and they may not like that and not want to rent to you. But you would have to read your lease and see if there is anything hidden, like the landlord not taking responsibility for the leaser or something for damages. But you said you have mold, that can be very harmful to YOUR health if you don't know. You also said that he is determined not to let you out of the lease, well if he keeps your living conditions in the way they are in now, you can perhaps do something legally, if you don't want to do that, I suggests you somehow threaten him about the mold and stuff, find out if by law you can make him pay or fix it. And most definitely try to find a new place to live if possible, because he is clearly not going to change the way he treats you.
Good luck and hope I was helpful.
Stephanie

Hello Mellissa:

You are entitled to a home that's "habitable". Determining whether your place is or isn't habitable is the key. Simply some mold growning on some walls wouldn't do it, I wouldn't think...

The problem is, I don't know how much of a fight you want to get into for two months. You're certainly going to wind up in court. You certainly might lose, and have to pay for a home you didn't live in.

If it was me, I'd just give my notice NOW and go when the lease is up.

excon

PS> If you want to fight 'em, however, I'll tell you how. I hate landlords who rip their tenants off.

As excon said, the only way out is to PROVE that the unit is uninhabitable. That means getting an inspection that makes that statement. Even then, you would still need to give the landlord reasonable time to repair the problem.

Your starting point is your area's Health Dept. They may send an inspector or tell you where to get one. You may have to pay for it.

With only two months left on the lease you may find it not worth the hassle since its loikely the lease will expire before all legal avenues have been exhausted. So just inform the landlord now that you will be moving when the lease expires.

Thanks for the greenie Scott, I'm new at this so bare with me. I just stated my opinion, and what I thought was kind of right.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Midnight16

Thanks for the greenie Scott, I'm new at this so bare with me. I just stated my opinion, and what I thought was kinda right.

Some questions can only be answered by opinion. However, many questions, especially ones that deal with law or technical issues in other words FACTS, can't be answered by opinion. You have to know or strongly believe you have the right answer.