Lease early termination fee

[Clayton Sneider]

Hey,

I have a tenant in my first rental property that wants to break the lease early. There is no early termination clause in my lease (I will add that in now, lesson learned). I would like to charge him ~1/2 month early termination fee, but he is fighting it.

Can I legally charge this early termination fee, even though it is not in my lease? It seems crazy to me that a tenant should be able to just terminate a lease at any time, with no penalty, whether it is in the lease or not.

Thanks.

[Benjamin Timmins]

IF he refuses to do it amicably, hold him to the lease, and take him to small claims court. Just make sure you attempt to limit your damages by looking for a new tenant.  You should get at the minimum at least 1 months rent ordered from the judge.