Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Michigan

This is a very specific situation and I want to premise this with saying that I understand the implications of a binding legal contract like a lease. My friend and I applied for a two bedroom apartment and were approved months before we needed to move in. The policy at this apartment complex is that they don't inform you of whether or not there will be an apartment for you until a few weeks before your scheduled move-in date because they don't require a notice-to-vacate until 30 days before they want to leave. Essentially, when it came down to it, we ended up moving into a one bedroom instead of a two bedroom because there were no two bedrooms available. We signed a lease for the one bedroom that would have ended August 31st. We were told we would only be living there for a week until the two bedroom was ready. One week turned into over a month and we were forced to sign another 12 month lease (This one not ending until September 30th). I recently asked that we only be obligated to fulfill our original lease and pay until August 31st because that was what he had in mind when we moved in and we have already chosen another apartment to live in. I realize that I have signed a lease that will go until September 31st, but is there any way I can use the fact that they essentially strong-armed us into paying another months rent in any sort of legal forum? I hope that this is concise but detailed enough to make sense. Thank you.


Asked on 8/04/10, 8:23 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Shelly Schellenberg MI & FL private practice

You will not be able to get out of your lease a month early, unless you can prove that the "strong-arm" tactics that they used included some sort of force, (like holding a gun to your head), or that you had no other choice, (if there are no other rental properties in the area). Since you planned on moving from the one bedroom apartment anyway, you could have just as easily moved into a different apartment complex 11 months ago, and you would have likely signed a 1 year lease there as well. You are correct that a lease is a legally binding contract. Talk to the landlord. If he can rent the unit to another party for more rent than he is charging you, he may let you out of the last month, otherwise, you are stuck.

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Answered on 8/10/10, 6:55 am


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