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Trouble with landlord. Trying to get out of lease

By Nikki

I signed a one year lease for a two bedroom apt in the Los Angeles area and its been six weeks and my landlord still has not given me a copy of my lease. I’ve emailed him a couple of times about all the broken things in the apt (a/c broken, all the screens on the windows have holes in them and let flies and moths in, possible termites) and he keeps giving me excuses and telling me he’s going to get around to it. Before I moved in he agreed (via text messages) that he would repair the cabinets thru out the apt that do not close properly, also still no progress.

I am trying to find out if this entitles me to break my lease? I paid first and a security deposit (one month’s rent). I am making sure to pay my rent but I want to break my lease and get my security deposit back.

Any advice?

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Edited on: Wednesday, May 4th, 2011 6:15 pm
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One Response to “Trouble with landlord. Trying to get out of lease”

My response: (We welcome stories, examples, explanations, answers and a touch of your personality)
 

Gary

May 4th, 2011 8:18 pm

Generally speaking, breaking a lease is difficult to do. You need to prove that your living conditions are not fit for living. If you are looking to break your lease for some other non-emergency reason, then find out if your city allows you to sublet.

Leases, like some rules, seem like a good idea at some point, but there’s often someone just waiting to break one of them. Of course, rules or leases are better broken when you have a good reason. I would call what you have endured a major disruption to your lives. You suffered vandalism (lack of security), insect infestation, broken windows and mold (lack of maintenance), and excessive noise from neighbors (lack of enforcing rental agreements). These are not minor inconveniences. Anyone dealing with these things routinely would be understandably upset and ready to move out. You are not prisoners and may move if it is not livable there. The law allows you, under certain conditions rendering the unit significantly uninhabitable, to vacate and be relieved of the obligation to pay further rent. In this situation, and under certain conditions, the lease could be broken with no penalty, and no minimum notice would be needed.

The best advise is to carefully read over your lease &&&& MOST importantly – CALL YOUR LANDLORD!!! You do not want to be considered a “skip”.

Your best option would be to call your Landlord, talk about it and if he still doesn’t agree or takes action about your complaints negotiate an early termination of the lease with the landlord. Many landlords have a policy regarding early termination that involves a fee to cover the costs of lost rent.

Before that you may secure supportive media to help you with the complaint about the place. Those can be a photo or a video. These will be very beneficial in supporting your complaint.

You may as well visit this site http://www.rentalprotectionagency.com/complaint_center.php to help you with your complaint.

I wish my comment helps you with the issues you are facing right now.

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