Troubling tenant always wanting to leave early

Harry Waugh · 2026-04-04T06:40:36-07:00

Hello, Tenant always wanted to leave a month after signing the lease and was never forced to leave home. Tenant claiming his wife had psc military orders and wife not on lease and were prior to lease signing and manager owner got pressured into a settlement deal and were doubtful if protections applied. The "wife" is listed as single on papers and never lived in the home. Tenant lived with a kid. Tenant name on orders as dependent. Tenant initially agreed to stay until replacement was found. Then suddenly out of nowhere tenant kept threatening to sue in various communications. They repudiated a settlement and release of claims signed agreement and is on record stating he voluntarily gave keys and emptied home can they still get a settlement payment per agreement. No right? Also said the signing was in error due to some email glitch and claimed never signed . Repudiated twice. Never did let up on litigation regarding military protections, which was listed as the most important part of agreement. In va state and relocation orders to a state across the country. The lease doesn't allow for early termination except if military protections are valid. Following va law and charging until lease end and trying to find new tenant to mitigate. Anything wrong with this? Would like lawyer input as well.

Theresa HarrisPro Member

Member since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes

6mo

I'm having problems following the story. You had a single adult with a dependent child sign the lease. This person wants out of the lease claiming their wife (who is not on the lease and doesn't reside there) got military orders to move. Tenant and kid have now moved out, but refused to sign paperwork stating that they moved out.

If the house is empty, you have the keys and the utilities are now in your name, send them a registered letter to the last known address and send the content via email to them saying they have vacated and the lease is terminated....then move on and get it rented. Stop replying to their calls or emails.

Only thing I could think of is if they were common law, separated prior to them moving into your place and she's the kid's mom. Then they may want to move so the kid is close to their mom. Either way, it isn't worth the hassle, I would have let them out of the lease in the beginning.

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Harry Waugh

OP

Member since 2026 · 2 posts · 0 votes

6mo

The settlement agreement is signed stating they move out on a particular date for a settlement payment and tied to most important part of agreement which is avoiding any litigation afterwards including scra claims which doesn't in our view doesn't apply. They are refusing to honor the most important part of the agreement. Manager/owner paying settlement for avoiding any litigation about any claims which tenant is refusing including scra claims. Gave another chance to reaffirm the agreement but refused again saying reserving right to litigate and military protections were not honored. So agreement was repudiated twice by tenant. Only thing left is lease document to fall back on and now tenant has left on their own not forced out and always wanted to leave well before signed agreement which was twice repudiated and not enforceable. Now tenant claiming was forced out and will sue and have been threatening litigation from moment they claimed military protection.

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G. Brian DavisPro Member

Investor · Hatboro, PA · Member since 2016 · 3k+ posts · 886 votes

6mo

This is one of those situations where the details really matter, so getting a local attorney involved is the right move.

At a high level, protections like SCRA usually apply to the service member or spouse, but timing, dependency status, and whether the orders were known before signing can all affect whether it's valid. The fact that the orders existed prior to lease signing and the spouse wasn't on the lease could matter, but it's not always straightforward. On the settlement side, if there was a signed agreement, the key question is whether it was properly executed and whether their repudiation has any legal effect. That's something a VA attorney would need to review closely, especially with their claim about not signing.

What you’re doing by trying to mitigate damages and re-rent is generally the right approach, but this is definitely a situation where you want legal guidance before taking a firm stance.

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Richard F.

Honolulu, HI · Member since 2008 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes

6mo

You will need to clean up your story considerably if you go before a Judge on it, or you will lose. It also sounds like your actual Rental Agreement review and signing process is extremely weak.

Every Application should require that all adult occupants complete and sign both the application, and if approved, the Rental Agreement. No Exceptions. The application should have a section to include names and ages of minors to document the household.

Every Rental Agreement should then name all adult occupants; all minors and their ages (Joey Smith, minor, 8; Susie Smith, minor, 11 -multiple names per line if necessary); Co-signers should be named and listed as "Guarantor Only"; and finally, "No Others" should be included immediately below last entry.

The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) provides clear authority and requirements for releasing Military Tenants from Rental Agreements and other obligations. They are required, by the Act, to provide you with written notice of Termination AND a copy of their Orders.

The Fines and Penalties for not following ALL applicable Fed, State, and Local laws can get extreme. You need to learn and follow those laws, and treat your rental management as the Business that it actually is.

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Troubling tenant always wanting to leave early

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