Do we have any legal grounds to sue if we were denied the right to move into our rental after we signed an agreement?
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Do we have any legal grounds to sue if we were denied the right to move into our rental after we signed an agreement?
We were scheduled to move into a rental house on the first of the month. We had given $5400 as a deposit. Then 2 days before at 9:20 p.m. we were sent this statement in an e-mail, “We are sorry but other plans have been made for the…property. We are refunding all of your funds to the address you gave us” We had already given our notice on the apartment that we were renting and they rented it to another family therefore we could not extend our lease. We have put all our belongings into storage and we are now homeless until we find another place. Do I have any legal rights against the landlord for this? I have signed agreements and e-mails indicating that the property was ours to rent.
Asked on June 3, 2011 under Real Estate Law, California
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Oh my goodness. I am so sorry. When you say that you signed an "agreement" do you mean that you signed a lease? Well a lease is a binding contract and you have the right to enforce the contract by what is called "specific performance" meaning that you can make the landlords abide by the agreement and have you rent the place. I would take the agreement that you have in your possession to an attorney to review on a consultation basis and see what the attorney says. You have a breach of contract claim on the lease agreement and damages most likely to sustain a suit. Good luck to you.
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