From Jennifer Lai,
Your Guide to Apartment Living / Rental.
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I want to leave my apartment, but my lease doesn't end for several months. How do I legally break a lease?

A.

The thing to remember is that an apartment lease is a legally binding contract between the tenant and the landlord. So, breaking a lease is like breaking any contract. There are usually penalties. That doesn't mean you should never break a lease.

In real life, things come up all the time: you get a new job that's out of town; you can no longer afford the rent; you're getting married. We can't always put our life on hold for a lease. While landlords understand this, it doesn't negate the fact that you're ending an agreement. For them, it means finding a new tenant sooner than they expected, and if you give them little notice, having an empty apartment until they find a replacement.

The key to all of this is choosing the best between two unappealing scenarios: stay in the apartment or break the lease. Which is better? Put another way: is the reason you want to break the lease strong enough to you that you're willing to suffer the penalities?

Before making the decision, you'll need to know about possible penalties.

Typical Penalties for Breaking a Lease

Many leases specify the penalties for breaking it. The penalties are there to deter tenants from breaking the lease and to compensate the landlord should a tenant decide to go ahead and do it.

Some areas have laws that govern how the breaking of a lease plays out. For example, some places allow tenants to break a lease if they're moving for a job. And people in the U.S.military have special rights concerning lease termination.

Common penalties include paying rent until the landlord finds a replacement (local laws may require the landlord to make an effort to find one) or loss of security deposit or both. Read the lease to find out what's been specified in your case and check out rental laws in your area. To do this, you can call a legal aid office or the state department that handles housing issues.

Breaking the Lease

If you decide to break the lease, talk to your landlord and be polite. You may need to use them as a reference in the future, so it's best not to burn any bridges. If you can help it, give them plenty of notice.

If you're in a situation where the landlord is justified in penalizing you for breaking the lease, it's up to him or her whether they actually want to enforce the penalties. If you're polite and honest about your reasons for leaving (such as moving to another state, getting married, etc.), they may let you out of your lease without any penalties. When doing this, remind them that you're a good tenant. Also, you could offer to find a replacement yourself, assign the lease or sublet. If they like you as a tenant, they may be happy to receive a recommendation from you for a replacement tenant. If they agree let you out of your lease without any penalties, remember to get it down in writing with both of your signatures. See this sample lease release form.

If the landlord decides to penalize you, I recommend following whatever was laid out in the lease. If you don't, the landlord could file a lawsuit against you.

Disclaimer: Please note that I am not a lawyer. I always advise that you talk to someone qualified to give legal advice on tenant issues before making any decisions related to the apartment lease or taking any legal actions.