I have just ran into a situation that I am not sure how to handle and would love your advice. I have a couple that is on my lease and signed until Novemeber. The one has just asked if she could break the lease without letting her partner know. How would you go about this?
She is technically responsible for the paid agreement until November, but she is also the individual who posted the deposit...
Both of them signed the lease. Check your wording, but it should say that they are both responsible (even if one leaves).
I will ask a question based on a few things-does she want to leave because of domestic violence? Her wanting to leave without giving him notice suggests that may be a possibility. There are other reasons of course, but something is fishy.
You could tell her to give 30 days' notice and pay the penalty to break the lease (assuming it is not domestic violence as there are local laws around leases in that instance), but that he has to be on board as they both have to be out. Otherwise, if he qualifies on his own, say you can remove her name from the lease with his knowing about it and it is up to them to sort out the deposit themselves.
Both of them signed the lease. Check your wording, but it should say that they are both responsible (even if one leaves).
I will ask a question based on a few things-does she want to leave because of domestic violence? Her wanting to leave without giving him notice suggests that may be a possibility. There are other reasons of course, but something is fishy.
You could tell her to give 30 days' notice and pay the penalty to break the lease (assuming it is not domestic violence as there are local laws around leases in that instance), but that he has to be on board as they both have to be out. Otherwise, if he qualifies on his own, say you can remove her name from the lease with his knowing about it and it is up to them to sort out the deposit themselves.
Rental Property Investor · Seattle, WA · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
2y
Agree they are both tenants and you can't keep it from the other tenant.
If she gives notice you can send them both their own move out letter which would give him a chance to react.
Agree the other one can stay if they want to and qualify.
We always designate one tenant as the primary, in the lease, and make it clear that they are the decision maker. Both would still need to be informed, but it makes it clearer how to proceed if they are not on the same page.
Investor · Greenville, SC · Member since 2016 · 5k+ posts · 13k+ votes
2y
Let her know that she and the other resident are both responsible for the lease through November. If they break the lease, they will be responsible for...whatever your lease says. That's the purpose of a lease...to prevent these situations and lay out in advance what occurs when something happens. Should not be a surprise to any party.
Real Estate Agent · Virginia Beach, VA · Member since 2012 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
2y
@Brandon Gall if it’s domestic abuse, in my state they can provide copy of protection order and give notice without penalty, and if abuser is only occupant left, you can then give notice to them. If it doesn’t meet that criteria, it would just be treated as an early termination request, with whatever penalty is in the lease, and both would have to agree or remain responsible through lease term. If the other qualifies on their own and agrees to it, I’d be ok with removing one. But only with transparency to all parties and signed amendment agreeing to changes.
Wow, thanks for all the great replies guys! Yeah, we're going to dig a bit deeper to see if there is any domestic violence going on. Hopefully it's nothing of that sort... Thanks again BP!