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Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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I'm in commercial real estate but residential is mostly the same. When you have a written contract (lease) then any change has to be signed by both parties. The letter advising of the 90 day vacation then was in compliance with the written lease. There was no written, signed agreement rescinding that, just an email which is not legal since it was not signed by the same 4 tenants as the lease and the notice to vacate. Since he never signed a new lease there should be no way for the landlord to enforce his ultimatum. I'm in Washington state however, and I do recommend taking this to a local tenant assistance agency in his state. Just have him google "tenant resources California".
He should just move out. At worst he will lose his deposit, which I imagine is much less than paying the full cost of the apartment by himself. In today's rental market they will find other renters and the cost of taking him to court won't pencil out. Call their bluff and chalk up the lost deposit as a financial educational expense.
Not at all. I am just saying what my thought process is. But this kind of common-sense reasoning does not always work in legal matters, and I am biased to being with. So I am asking for opinions from more informed people.
- In the email, he said that he intends to stay and will be looking for roommates. They said that ok, we will generate a new lease that he can sign. No new lease was generated, and he did no sign anything.
- Over a month before current lease expiration, he sent another message saying that he wasn't able to find anyone, and so he won't be able to stay. To this they replied that ok, send your 30-day vacating notice. To that, he replied that he had already sent his 90-day notice.
- After a few days, they changed their tune. They sent a message saying "after careful review, you were supposed to send a 90-day notice. we "encourage" you to sign a new lease or find a sub-lease or else there can be consequences."
Now what?
I'd seek out professional legal help on this matter (like yesterday) if you think this is really going to be an issue, but I wager that the bolded is going to be critical. Even if contracts generally require an offer, acceptance of said offer, and some form of consideration (e.g. money changing hands) to be enforceable, promises can still be enforceable absent all of the aforementioned elements being met if one relied on a promise to one's detriment. Whether your son noting that he "intends to stay" is a promise that can be enforced under detrimental reliance principles is not something that anyone can likely answer here, which is all the more reason to consider seeking formal legal advice on the matter. In a light most favorable to your son, the bolded may very well save him if one read's the leasing office's intention to send over a new lease as a modifier/qualifier; that said, we also don't know how much time passed between your son's intention statement and him trying to back out. Thus, I repeat that I recommend formal legal advice on this matter.
Note, upon reading some of your subsequent posts, it's very well possible that the vacating language is critical here, but again I'd seek legal help on this issue.
Not at all. I am just saying what my thought process is. But this kind of common-sense reasoning does not always work in legal matters, and I am biased to being with. So I am asking for opinions from more informed people.
I've been a renter and I've been a landlord, so I'm not uniformed. I've had several tenants move out abruptly, violating the terms of the lease. I knew I could get another tenant within a few weeks and I was holding a month's rent deposit from when they moved in. Given that they violated the lease, they don't get their deposit back and it was going to cover the lost rent. I saw no reason to pursue it further.
But maybe that's me. I'm not the vindictive type. Life is too short for that. But if you are really worried about it, follow the suggestions of other posters and pay for an attorney's time to discuss the options and potential ramifications.
I've been a renter and I've been a landlord, so I'm not uniformed. I've had several tenants move out abruptly, violating the terms of the lease. I knew I could get another tenant within a few weeks and I was holding a month's rent deposit from when they moved in. Given that they violated the lease, they don't get their deposit back and it was going to cover the lost rent. I saw no reason to pursue it further.
But maybe that's me. I'm not the vindictive type. Life is too short for that. But if you are really worried about it, follow the suggestions of other posters and pay for an attorney's time to discuss the options and potential ramifications.
I withheld my tenants' security deposits in leue of rent, but theoretically they could sue you and demand the security deposit back. Some states explicitly say it's not legal to do so.
Having said that, it's probably the easiest remedy for the landlord to do.
- In the email, he said that he intends to stay and will be looking for roommates. They said that ok, we will generate a new lease that he can sign. No new lease was generated, and he did no sign anything.
- Over a month before current lease expiration, he sent another message saying that he wasn't able to find anyone, and so he won't be able to stay. To this they replied that ok, send your 30-day vacating notice. To that, he replied that he had already sent his 90-day notice.
- After a few days, they changed their tune. They sent a message saying "after careful review, you were supposed to send a 90-day notice. we "encourage" you to sign a new lease or find a sub-lease or else there can be consequences."
Now what?
Move out to the new place. Do not sign anything. Stand your ground that the lease has expired and notice has been given. Do not be afraid of the "consequences" - if they bring you to the court, go there and argue your case. It all depends on how quickly the landlord finds new tenants.
I withheld my tenants' security deposits in leue of rent, but theoretically they could sue you and demand the security deposit back. Some states explicitly say it's not legal to do so.
Having said that, it's probably the easiest remedy for the landlord to do.
While you can sue anybody for anything, they had no legal ground to win. The lease they signed said they had to give me 30 days notice to move out (90 days is ridiculous). The lease stated that the deposit was being held in case of damage or unpaid rent. None of them ever challenged me on it because they knew I was being fair about it.
I guess I don't get the mentality of forcing someone into another year's lease when they don't want to be there. Just seems like a really bad idea and all kinds of animosity. Maybe I'm naive, since it has been awhile since being a landlord, but I thought today's rental market is tight and getting a willing tenant in your unit isn't that hard.
.......... getting a willing tenant in your unit isn't that hard.
Getting a willing tenant would be easy. However most landlords prefer to get a qualified tenant, which sets a higher bar and it is a lot of work to screen through all the unqualified applicants. It can take some time to find a qualified tenant.
I could fill 100 apartments in a week if I would accept felons, drug dealers, evictees, deadbeats, bankrupts, welfare recipients, smokers, house beaters, hoarders, and pitbulls. And the family that called and had four emotional support dogs, 3 emotional support cats, and an emotional support parrot. All of those folks are out there searching for a place to live where the landlord won't screen applicants. So yeah. Lots of tenants available to fill an apartment.
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