Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

My husband signed a one year contract with a PM company to rent our second home on March 3, 2012.
They did an inspection of the property and gave us a list of items to repair/replace before the property would be "rentable". They sent an estimate of over $2100 for them to do the work. We have done most of the list ($600 for supplies and 5 hours work) but now feel the PM company has "attitude". They are not going to rent the property for what we want (they want to rent it for lower, and even lower than what others are in the area) and they are not even going to charge one months rent (or more) as a deposit.
In the contract it states that if we cancel that they get their PM fees which are 8% of the monthly rent. Since they have not rented the place, how can they charge us fees (8% of 0 is still 0 in my book) for the whole 12 months despite how from the time the contract was signed 2 months ago it has not been rented. When he signed the contract the PM knew that we had not moved out yet and it wouldnt be ready for about a month. They have not rented the property.
We can not afford to pay the PM fees and have even considered selling the home. The property is in CA and we live in CA as well. The PM company is insisting that we pay the PM fees and are not willing to negotiate.What can we do to cancel this contract.

Asked on 5/07/12, 11:46 pm

0 users found helpful

0 attorneys agreed

There is no way to answer your question without reviewing the contract.

Answered on 5/08/12, 10:53 am

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