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-   -   NJ: Breaking a rental lease. (https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/showthread.php?t=122300)

  • Aug 23, 2007, 03:04 PM
    Johnsontm
    NJ: Breaking a rental lease.
    Good morning,
    My son and his wife (newlyweds) reside in an apartment complex in Blackwood NJ. They signed a year lease Dec 2006. Recently, my son was selected for a new job in North Carolina. They were told that to break the lease they would have to pay (2) months rent $1500.00 and lose their security deposit $1000.00.
    They understand there is a penalty for breaking the lease. However, paying (2) months rent AND losing their security deposit seems a bit much to them. They could understand one or the other.
    They want to do the right thing which is fair for both parties.
    Please advise.
  • Aug 23, 2007, 03:28 PM
    rockinmommy
    Well, legally, if that's what the lease states that they signed when they moved in the landlord can charge that. Double check the link to NJ's landlord/tenant laws in the first post in this forum to make sure what the law actually states.

    What you're describing is actaully fairly typical. I know it seems like a lot from the tenant's perspective, but from the landlord's perspective it's a big, expensive inconvenience to have units turning over every 8 or 9 months. Has your son checked with the employer to see if the fees can be part of his relocation package? That, also is a fairly common practice. Employers expect people to incur such expenses when they're relocating.

    If they are required to pay 2 months rent and the unit rents faster than that (ask a neighbor to keep them informed) the landlord should refund that pro-rated amount of rent. However a lot of landlord's will attempt to get around this by having the tenant sign a lease termination and it just so happens that the "lease termination fee" is exactly equal to 2 months rent. Then it's no longer considered rent and the landlord wouldn't be "double dipping".

    Hope that helps.
    Karla in TX

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