How can I break my lease without penalty?
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How can I break my lease without penalty?
I need to break my lease since I can’t afford this apartment with me getting laid off. My lease agreement tells me that I need to pay over $3000 to break it or pay the rent until they found another tenant. What should I do to break it?
Asked on November 2, 2011 under Real Estate Law, Florida
Answers:
FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If you have a written lease with additional term left on it that you can no longer afford to pay due to you being laid off, the best way to resolve the situation is to try and get someone to sublease the unit from you. By doing this, you can pay the landlord what you owe monthly assuming you have a tenant that is able to cover most if not all of all of the obligation you are responsible for.
If you cannot make the monthly payments, the landlord can evict you and sue you for the monthly amount that you are contractually obligated for.
Your options are to pay the $3,000 as the penalty to end the lease or try and find a replacement tenant. Good luck.
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