Comments on: Tenant Troubles: What Would You Do?

By: Anon

Anon — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 06:04:35 +0000

I wouldn’t charge her penalties, though. I also agree with the advice of not releasing the security deposit until after you verify that the place is clean.

By: Posts I Enjoyed Last Week

Posts I Enjoyed Last Week — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 04:58:38 +0000

[...] Man at Lazy Man and Money shares his story (or his trouble) with a tenant: if the tenant breaks the lease, what would the landlord [...]

By: Everything Finance

Everything Finance — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 16:55:06 +0000

I say “Let it go” or just as a principle charge her $1.
When someone has been good to you, its time to return the favor.

By: kingking

kingking — Thu, 24 May 2007 20:57:44 +0000

Lazy Man, listen to the majority and let her go. You have been blessed in having this person care for your property. Put yourself in her shoes. What if you had not moved because of a wonderful job opportunity, but instead had lost your job and wound up on the verge of foreclosure? Wouldn’t you appreciate any kindness anyone afforded you? Whatever you’re losing by doing the right thing is far less that the $40,000 you say you could have lost. Shame on you. Grow up and stop whining.

By: Blaine Moore (First Time Home Owner)

Blaine Moore (First Time Home Owner) — Mon, 21 May 2007 13:09:21 +0000

I would say that you should let her go for all the reasons mentioned above. Chances are pretty good that your next tenant is not going to be nearly as good as she was and you will realize how great it was to have her as your first tenant. Ask that she leave everything clean and maintained, and if she knows anybody that could take her place. Start advertising for a new tenant. I wouldn’t charge her penalties, though. I also agree with the advice of not releasing the security deposit until after you verify that the place is clean.

By: Shadox

Shadox — Sun, 20 May 2007 15:54:45 +0000

It seems I am with the majority. If she has been such a great tenant, let her go and forget about it. If you truly believe that she has a good reason to break the lease you should simply allow her to leave. I am sure that she will do her best to help you find a new tenant.

By: Gaming the Credit System

Gaming the Credit System — Sun, 20 May 2007 08:04:31 +0000

I’m with others who say just to let her go. Karma and all that jazz. If she’s really been a model tenant and she really has a life-or-death thing then IMO it’d be unethical to make her pay for an early lease termination. Yes, I know there’s probably a clause in the contract and a well-defined penalty for breaking it early, but still…. let her off without a fine.

By: Lazy Man

Lazy Man — Sun, 20 May 2007 02:45:44 +0000

Anon, I asked her to deduct the forwarding of the mail. As for the landscaping, I didn’t ask, so no, she can’t just do it and charge me. Remember Anon, I’m not the one breaking the contract here. She always has the choice to stick with what was drawn up.

By: vadonna

vadonna — Sun, 20 May 2007 02:38:46 +0000

No, no penalty. There are good tenants and bad tenants. The harsh terms of a lease are for the bad tenants. When you have a good tenant, bend over backward for them because THEY are doing YOU a favor by paying a good chunk of your mortgage. Let her break the lease and move on. I rent a home and it’s common to rent for less than the mortgage payment. If property owner cannot afford to keep the house when it is not rented then owner should not be in the renting business and house should be sold.

By: Verena

Verena — Sun, 20 May 2007 02:08:45 +0000

I have been an apartment building owner for 14 years, and I have yet to charge a tenant for breaking a lease. They are generally relocating due to changing jobs. While it always ends up costing me money, I view it as a cost of doing business. I try to treat my tenants as I would like to be treated, and I think it pays off in the end. I have had more than one tenant return after moving back into the area, and a lot of my new tenants are referrals from past/existing tenants.

By: anon

anon — Sun, 20 May 2007 01:18:56 +0000

I hope she deducts the amount of forwarding your mail and improving your landscaping from your ‘penalty.’ Give me a break, it’s 2 months, she gave you notice.

Money-grubber.

By: RateLadder.com

RateLadder.com — Sat, 19 May 2007 14:06:31 +0000

Having a non contentious lease ending is always important… I would let her out… Thanks her for forwarding the mail and adding flowers… wish her the best…. and start looking for a new tenet yesterday.

By: thefinancialblogger.com

thefinancialblogger.com — Sat, 19 May 2007 00:35:11 +0000

How about asking her to find a new tenant while she is there? If she does, than you are all set as you won’t lose money and she won’t have penalty to pay. Depending on your area, another tenant might be easy to find. That was the solution my landlord found for my personal case few years ago and it end it up well. In any case, I think it would not be fair to charge the full penalty.
MiKe!

By: Tim

Tim — Fri, 18 May 2007 21:02:39 +0000

well, it is purely up to you; however, giving away and letting things slide is not a good way of doing business nor a profitable one. she entered into the lease knowing the ramifications for breaking the lease early. come on, it’s a business, it’s not personal. but, as you’ve written, you’ve already made the decision.

what was her story?

By: Adventures In Money Making

Adventures In Money Making — Fri, 18 May 2007 19:43:49 +0000

let is go.
besides, if she’s in CA you’ll lose in court.
also, according to the law, you have to make reasonable attempts to re-lease the property.
if you lease it up in a week,she’s only due for 1 week’s worth of rent. there’s no
double-dipping allowed.

By: Anne

Anne — Fri, 18 May 2007 18:48:43 +0000

@lazy man – Then you should definitely defer to your lawyer since s/he knows the situation. But in most jurisdictions, while you may have a right to the remaining lease payments, you do have a duty to mitigate damages by trying to find another tenant. In the hypothetical in your blog post, if you found someone to take over the lease right after your existing tenant moved out, you would have to deduct the rent the new tenant paid you from the “penalty.”

By: Wil

Wil — Fri, 18 May 2007 18:47:37 +0000

I would say let her out. She seems to have done some good things while she was there, and you believe her story, so getting a penalty out of her would nag you. I don’t think you would ever feel “right” about it afterward. You both move on, and everyone lives happier, knowing they were both good.

By: NatalieMac

NatalieMac — Fri, 18 May 2007 18:13:50 +0000

She’s been a great tenant, you trust her. Create some good karma for yourself and just let her go. She wouldn’t be breaking the lease if it wasn’t for a good reason, and you have an opportunity to help her out. I’m sure she would be very appreciative.

I’m not a landlord, but I did get stuck dealing with a nasty, nasty landlord who not only refused to let me out of a lease, but caused all kinds of problems for me when I tried to sublet the apartment (which I was allowed to do, according to the lease). It ended up being a nightmare for me, and if they had just been a bit more helpful, my life would have been 10000% easier.

By: MillionDollarJourney.com

MillionDollarJourney.com — Fri, 18 May 2007 17:55:38 +0000

I’ve run into this situation a couple of times before. I think that you are better off just letting her leave. Just make sure that the apartment is nice and clean before you give back her security deposit.

By: 2 BROS BLOGGING

2 BROS BLOGGING — Fri, 18 May 2007 17:26:54 +0000

You should start marketing it right now. Tell her to have it cleaned and have her show it for you. An incentive for here is that if she gets it rented out so you lose no rent days, you’ll let her out. Else, have her pay for up to the first 30 days of it being vacant, up until it gets rented. It’s like splitting the cost down the middle.