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tbertran · Jun 5, 2007, 09:27 AM

I entered a 1-year lease on 3/1/2007.
I was informed by a realtor on 6/4/07 that the house was going up for sale but not to worry, it might take months for it to sell...
Can a landlord do this?
Even if the house takes a year to sell, how about my right to enjoy a quiet environment (for sale sign, intrusive onlookers, house visits... )?

bushg · Jun 5, 2007, 09:33 AM

The same thing happened to me years ago. After I had been there efor 1 week I was told that as long as I was a good tenant then the new owner would have to honor my lease until it was up, then they would have the option to renew it. No one seemed to care about me me bothered by the potential buyers, however they had to set their appointments around my time.:)

michealb · Jun 5, 2007, 10:05 AM

Read your lease it might say something about when the landlord can have people go through the house. I believe the lease I use says something like 2 months before the lease ends we can have people look at the house. If your lease doesn't say anything about it generally they have to give you 24 hours notice and you might want to work out with your landlord how to disrupt you the least. Maybe only show the house one day a week when you have somewhere else to be. Clean up the place real nice and let the agent come in and take pictures, good pictures will hopefully will reduce the number of people that go through and the amount of time they stay. Talk with your landlord voice your concerns most landlords are reasonable people who don't want to cause undue stress on good tenants. Get any agreement that you come to in writing.

tbertran · Jun 5, 2007, 10:22 AM

Originally Posted by michealb

Read your lease it might say something about when the landlord can have people go through the house. I believe the lease I use says something like 2 months before the lease ends we can have people look at the house. If your lease doesn't say anything about it generally they have to give you 24 hours notice and you might want to work out with your landlord how to disrupt you the least. Maybe only show the house one day a week when you have somewhere else to be. Clean up the place real nice and let the agent come in and take pictures, good pictures will hopefully will reduce the number of people that go through and the amount of time they stay. Talk with your landlord voice your concerns most landlords are reasonable people who don't want to cause undue stress on good tenants. Get any agreement that you come to in writing.

My first concern is the fact that lease would be breached if he sells the house before the end of the lease (which is very likely since it ends in 9 months). Also, I have read that the unexpired lease has to be taken on by the next owner to the end of it unless a buy-out is agreed on... Anything on this?
BTW, I live in California.

ordinaryguy · Jun 5, 2007, 10:35 AM

Normally the lease would be binding on the new owner if the house sells before the lease is up. Read the lease carefully to see if it includes any contingencies or exceptions related to a sale.

michealb · Jun 5, 2007, 10:54 AM

Generally the lease has to be honored unless the lease states otherwise. They may want to discuss a buy-out probably would benefit the landlord also even if he has to pay out 2 or 3 months rent because the house will sell better if the new owner doesn't have to take the tenant. Look on the internet for tenant rights assoc. in your area they generally give free advice of what to expect and if your landlord is acting within the laws of your state.

tbertran · Jun 8, 2007, 07:46 AM

An update: the owner and I made a deal.
If he sells the house before the term of my lease, I get credit for 2 months (free rent or cash). If the house is not in escrow in 4 months, I will be able to give my 30-day notice to get out of it (without the credit though).
That's the best compromise given the situation (he can't make the mortgage payments anymore and has to sell).

michealb · Jun 8, 2007, 09:39 AM

Glad to hear that you worked something out with your landlord.

ordinaryguy · Jun 8, 2007, 11:28 AM

Originally Posted by tbertran

An update: the owner and I made a deal.
If he sells the house before the term of my lease, I get credit for 2 months (free rent or cash). If the house is not in escrow in 4 months, I will be able to give my 30-day notice to get out of it (without the credit though).
That's the best compromise given the situation (he can't make the mortgage payments anymore and has to sell).

Good for you. Negotiated settlements are almost always better than litigated ones. I'm almost surprised he agreed to it though. If he can't make the payments with your rent coming in, he'll be in even worse shape if the house doesn't sell in four months and you move out. At that point, he'll become what they call a "highly motivated seller".