Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Hello Sir and Madam,

I rented an apartment and only stayed at the apartment less than 40 days. There are two reasons forcing me to move out in an unexpectedly short time and break the leasing contract. The first is that the tenant living upstairs kept making noises and drove me crazy. The sounds when they were walking and running in their apartment and closing the closet door are like something pounding on the floor. The noises are continuously and consistently. It really bothers my wife and me.

The second is that the security gate had been not functioned since I moved in.

I could not open the gate in the first week due to malfunction of the system. And then the gate is open all the time due to failures. The problem has not even been resolved before I moved out. I felt insecure living in the community.

I moved in the apartment on 7/22 and moved out on 8/31. Now, I am asked to pay the penalty of early termination with amount of $3640(two-month rents) due to breaking the contract. Besides, I have also to pay $1820(one-month rent) for lack of 30 days notice prior to the termination. I only stayed around one month and I have to pay three-month rents for penalty. Is it fair? Is any way I can reduce the payment?

Thanks a lot,

Leon


Asked on 11/15/11, 3:06 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Philip Iadevaia Law Offices of Philip A. Iadevaia

The basic rule is that you have to pay for every day you stay at the apartment. With that in mind, you can break your lease and move anytime, but legal issues mount when you do that, depending on the type of tenancy you have. If you have a "lease" as opposed to a "month-to-month" tenancy, you have essentially bought the apartment for the entire lease term and are making monthly payments on it. Your promise is to pay each month to remain in the apartment. When you break the lease by moving out, you are responsible for entire lease term. So if it's a six month lease at $1,000 per month, you bought the apartment for $6,000. If you move out in two months, you'll owe $4,000. But the Landlord (LL) will have to sue you for it. Maybe they will, maybe they won't, that's what you need to negotiate.

If you have a month-to-month (mtm) agreement, you can move out anytime, but it's wise to give 30 days notice (and pay for those days), and you may be contractually obligated to give 30 days notice. In this case, you may or may not be entitled to your security deposit back.

Since you've already moved out, you have broken the lease, if applicable. Depending on the term of the lease, your three months penalty may be a bargain. If on a mtm term, then your security deposit may be at risk, but you are responsible for all the days you remained in possession before you moved out. You should carefully review the rental agreement and consult a lawyer. Good luck.

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Answered on 11/15/11, 8:02 am


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