Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

i opened a business in ca. a yr ago and signed a 3yr commercial lease agreement. sadly my business will not make it past its 1st year. i've notified the property management company and they want at least half of the remainder of the contract, which would be 20,000. that's a lot of money! i might be able to make monthly payments of $500 for the next few years to pay it off but i'm wondering if i can get them to reduce the amount to only 10,000 instead or eliminate it completely. i'm already in a lot of debt trouble due to loans for the business so if i can get them to lower the amount or completely eliminate the rest of it, that would be even better. is there any way i can do this? my only other option is to file for bankruptcy but i'd like to explore other options before having to do so.


Asked on 8/14/14, 1:25 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Paymon Bidari Bidari Civil Defense

There is an old saying: Can't squeeze water from a rock. If you don't have the money, then it will be hard for owner to collect. Moreover, owner has duty to "mitigate-" meaning they have to try and rent it out to someone else and then if they can't rent for same or higher price, then they could legally sue you for remainder. Bankruptcy on this issue seems like an overkill.

If you have questions or concerns, please call me at 714-525-5570. Hopefully we can meet in resolving this issue on terms that are amicable to both sides.

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Answered on 8/14/14, 4:21 pm


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