Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

If your written lease is on the typical forms, it would be binding for a year, even with your conversation about early termination, prior to signing it. That's why it's a good idea to have important documents reviewed, Look for a clause in the lease, indicating that the written lease is the full agreement of the parties, or words to that effect. That type of clause is called an "integration clause." It eliminates, from a written agreement, anything that is said before or during the document's signing. You could, possibly, have remedies, if you can prove that the lease should have contained an early-termination provision or that you justifiably relied on the oral promise and that reliance was an inducement for you to sign the lease. Frankly, I don't think either of these remedies would work, particularly because of the integration clause. As for the money that you deposited, The landlord is only entitled to get what was lost. If the landlord rented the premises for the same price or more than your rent, the landlord can keep the amount that makes the landlord whole. So, if the landlord lost $1800 in rent, the landlord should only keep $1800 and return the rest to you. The landlord must return your security deposit or provide you with a report of how it was used, within 21 days of your vacating the premises. If you do not get the money and/or the report, within that time, you get the entire $800 back.