Does Jilted Tenant Have the Right to Break Lease?
Question: My married friend leased an apartment for six months. Only three months into the lease, her husband, whose name does not appear on the lease, took every piece of furniture but a sofa. He has disappeared, nowhere to be found.
My friend now wants to get out of the lease and move home with her mom and sort through this nightmare. Can she write a letter describing the events and break her lease? What can she do to get out of this?
Answer: The last thing your friend needs now is more bad news, but I am afraid she is out of luck unless the landlord will allow her to break the lease. However, if she were to give notice and leave, the landlord is legally required to make an effort to re-rent the unit as soon as possible. Your friend would be responsible for all rent until the unit is rented, plus reasonable costs of advertising the rental unit.
In either case, clear and open communication with the owner-management is essential. If they do not have any other vacancies, then moving out may be the best option.
If there are several vacancies, she should figure out how to stay or offer a lump sum payment to get the landlord to break the lease (assuming the landlord will not show any mercy--which they are under no legal obligation to do).
See an Attorney About Fire Liability Issues
Q: We moved into this property several months ago and never had any type of walk-through, checklist, etc., with our landlord. He simply came by our previous residence and dropped off the keys.
A month later there was a fire in my bedroom. The fire department declared it to be electrical, but the building’s insurance company claims it was started by a candle.
There is a fire alarm directly outside my bedroom door in the hallway and it did not go off the night of the fire. The fire department said it was not working.
Is there any law that requires the landlord to ensure these items are working before a new tenant moves in? If the smoke detector was in proper working condition, I could have salvaged more of my personal belongings. We contacted the city building code inspectors and hopefully they will investigate soon.
A: Yes, the smoke detector should have been tested when you moved in. You not only need to worry about reimbursement for the damage to your possessions, you may find yourself being sued by the insurance company for property damage based on the allegation that you started the fire.
Get a copy of the fire department’s report. Based on the facts you presented, I would suggest that you contact an attorney and get proper legal advice.
Tenants in a Sale Unit May Seek Rent Reduction
Q: We are under a lease with five months remaining. We knew that the property would be placed on the market, but we were not prepared for the challenges we have encountered.
The real estate agent is quite aggressive, to the point of bringing a prospective client onto the property before we had even unpacked our boxes when we first moved in.
Since the first of the month, he has attempted to show the property three times in the last three business days to three different purchasers. We think this is excessive and an abuse of our rights per California Civil Code section 1954.
He now tells us that it would be easier for all if he installed a lockbox on our back door. If we consent to a lock box are we able to ask for a rent reduction? What are our rights?
A: You are definitely entitled to proper notice per California Civil Code section 1954. This code section requires that you be given 24 hours advance notice and that entry only occurs during reasonable business hours (primarily 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and possibly Saturday) for a reasonable length of time and should not include mass market sales efforts.
The idea of a lockbox may make sense for you. However, the loss of privacy with a lockbox should be a major concern and thus I would suggest that you require a rent reduction.
Generally the rent reduction will depend on your rental rate and whether you have a lease or month-to-month agreement.
However, a ballpark range for a rent reduction would be at least $100 to $200 per month or 10% to 20% of your monthly rent.
You might also want to take the time and effort to videotape your unit and possessions in the event there is any problem with damaged or missing items.
*
This column is written by property manager Robert Griswold, host of “Real Estate Today!” (KSDO-AM[1130], 10 a.m. to noon Saturdays), and attorneys Steven R. Kellman, director of the Tenants’ Legal Center, and Ted Smith, principal in a law firm representing landlords. If you have a question, send it to Rental Roundtable, Real Estate section, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., CA 90012. Or you may e-mail them at rgriswold.latimes@retodayradio.com. Questions should be brief and to the point and cannot be answered individually.
