Ask Me Help Desk - Residential Lease ? In Florida!

My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of:Florida

I signed a 2 year lease on Feb 1st, 2007. In January of 2008, my across the street neighbor walked into my house with a saw and threatened me and my family (a backstory is involved but I feel unimportant and she was not provoked). She was non physically forced out of the house.The police came out and arrested her.

Now for the good stuff... The landlord is best friend with the woman across the street that was arrested. I believe she helped bond her out and is always over there. When this happened, she did not one time check to see if my family or I was hurt or OK in any way.

Anyway, the police suggested that we get a restraining order against this woman(the lady living across the street). We did and the court awarded us one. We have had the police out on on numerous times(about 10-15 times a police report was made) between the time she was arrested and the time of the restraining order for revving her motor at my kids, threatening my girlfriend, yelling obscenities at my children, etc.

Well, needless to say, the landlord was not too happy with this. She has asked us to drop the charges even OFFERING US free rent which she refused. The lady across the street has moved out and within 2 weeks was at our next door neighbors yelling at my kids and girlfriend. The police were called again and she was arrested again for violating a restraining order.

Well, we started to look for a new place to rent but it won't be available until June 1st.There is only a couple of problems with this- 1)I cannot for the life of me find a copy of the lease and am beginning to wonder if I ever got one so I can look at it but I remember it was a straight lease form for Florida out of a book and 2) Am I obligated for the remaining 9 months of the lease? And 3)Will I have a problem receiving my security deposit?

Should I ask the landlord (which now is pissed at me) for a copy of the lease? I know if she says she doesn't have one that it turns into a month to month and I no longer would have to worry about the remainder of the lease. Also, I plan to send them a 30 day termination letter of lease by the end of this month(April). The biggest problem I have is I don't have the money if anything were to happen (her try to evict me)because I have my money tied into the new place in June.

All rent has been paid on time and I have reciepts for those and the Security Deposit...

Any help would be certainly appreciated and I don't know where else to go. I cannot afford an attorney at all. Thanks for your time and efforts if you reply!! God Bless!!

The bad news is that I don't believe you have grounds for breaking your lease. And, in the state of Florida, the landlord is not obligated to try and rent the unit before the end of the lease.

The good news, is that the landlord would probably like you out just as much as you want to get out.

So go to the landlord and explain that, given the circumstances you feel its best for all parties if you move as soon as possible. Get the landlord to sign a letter agreeing to the early termination of your lease as of 5/30. However, if she refuses to sign you are in trouble. In that case, you will probably have to move and tell her to sue you for the balance of the lease. This means she will get to keep your deposit for unpaid rent and can sue you for the rest of the lease until 2/1/2009. Whether she will win in court, I'm not sure, I think its about 50/50.

By the way, before you move I would get a post office or letter drop box and give that as your forwarding address. Since the crazy neighbor is a friend of the landlord you do not want them knowing your new address.

But doesn't the landlord have to provide me with some sort of security since she knows of the problem? I find it hard to believe that any court would not side with me on what I have said or done. The problem is not going to stop obviously since she has already violated the restraining order since she has moved. That shows that this is not going to stop and with the landlord being her friend also shows that she is not acting in my best interests at all. Isn't that the grounds to every lease- the right to peace and quiet and not to be able to walk out my front door without knowing what is going to happen to me or my family next??

In fact you do have a way out of the lease. You have the right by law to breack the lease if you do not feel safe for you or your family. You have to look at this as it would end up in court. SO first get copies of police reports for all the ties they visited you. It os very important you have proof the woman come to your house fater she had moved out. Secondly I would talk to the landlord about moving out and 'feel' his reaction. If he sound pissed the you have a problem. Write him the termination letter anyway and explain that the reson you are terminating your lease if because you do not feel your family is safe because of this woman. Now this may end-up in cours and ity will depend on the judge. You could loose if the judge feels thye landlord has not responsible in any way for you troubles. If the woman was renting however form the same landord you may be in luck - because the law sais the landlord is responsible to provide a safe environment for its tennants. I would sugget to find a lawyer that would give you a free consultatation or find a web site that gives free legal advice. The law may vary from state to state.

Quote:

Originally Posted by odobson

In fact you do have a way out of the lease. You have the right by law to breack the lease if you do not feel safe for you or your family.

I disagree with this. Please cite any law that states you can break a lease because you don't feel safe. One MIGHT be able to break a lease if they can prove that the landlord created or willfully ignored a condition under their control that affected the safety of the tenant. But I don't see that as the case here. Like I said, it's a 50/50 proposition at best that a court would agree there were grounds here to break the lease.

No your landlord does NOT have to provide you with any sort of security from this situation. They have to provide you with a door and a lock, that's all. A court doesn't "side with" an individual, they side with the law! A court is required to rule on what the law says, not necessarily what may be fair. And I don't know of any law that would allow you to break a lease because a neighbor is harassing you. That's what restraining orders are for.

And no, the landlord is not responsible for what happens when you walk out the front door. Even if the landlord is a friend of the harasser.

Again your best bet is reach an agreement to terminate the lease early.

Quote:

Originally Posted by odobson

In fact you do have a way out of the lease. You have the right by law to breack the lease if you do not feel safe for you or your family. You have to look at this as it would end up in court. sO first get copies of police reports for all the ties they visited you. It os very important you have proof the woman come to your house fater she had moved out. Secondly I would talk to the landlord about moving out and 'feel' his reaction. If he sound pissed the you have a problem. Write him the termination letter anyway and explain that the reson you are terminating your lease if because you do not feel your family is safe because of this woman. Now this may end-up in cours and ity will depend on the judge. You could loose if the judge feels thye landlord has not responsible in any way for you troubles. If the woman was renting however form the same landord you may be in luck - because the law sais the landlord is responsible to provide a safe environment for its tennants. I would sugget to find a lawyer that would give you a free consultatation or find a web site that gives free legal advice. The law may vary from state to state.

I do not agree - you are legally incorrect. There is no "right by law" to break a lease if you do not feel safe UNLESS the threat comes from the landlord. Can you quote where you got this law?

You say "you have the right to break the lease" and then you say, "you may lose if the judge feels the landlord was not responsible ..." These are contradictory statements.

Concerning the OP's questions:

1)I cannot for the life of me find a copy of the lease and am beginning to wonder if I ever got one so I can look at it but I remember it was a straight lease form for Florida out of a book - I'm not sure what the question is but ask your landlord for a copy. Leases are not filed anywhere so there is no other avenue.

2) Am I obligated for the remaining 9 months of the lease? Yes, a lease is a contract which you will be breaking UNLESS you can negotiate with the landlord (as Scott has suggested). Florida is "odd" in that the landlord does not have to attempt to replace you with another tenant so you will be looking at the balance of the rent. There is always Court but it is not the landlord's responsibility to keep you safe.

3)Will I have a problem receiving my security deposit? Depends on whether there is damage.

4)Should I ask the landlord (which now is pissed at me) for a copy of the lease? You have no choice.