Legal Question in Real Estate Law in New Jersey

Re: rental laws

You should immediately send your friend a letter, certified mail, return receipt, telling him he must vacate by January 1. The letter will be technically invalid since you are not giving him 30 days advance notice, but you must send it to cover yourself. Mention in it that you have previously given him verbal notice of the termination date and the letter is merely confirming the prior conversations. You should also notify the landlord, in writing, that you have vacated, but that there is a person living there who refuses to vacate. Give the landlord a copy of your letter to your friend. As the signatory on the lease, you are responsible for any holdover tenants and could be held liable for any costs the landlord incurs in getting him to vacate. Alternatively, if the lease was renewable, you could suggest to the landlord that he contact your friend about a lease renewal directly with your friend, with you having no responsibility. You might also mention this in your letter to your friend. It might be worth it to have an attorney write these letters for you. Call me if you have any questions (973)-377-3313

Walter

Re: rental laws

Let's take this one step at a time. Of course he "could" sue you. Anyone can sue anyone else for any reason. Whether he would win or not is another question. If he has been paying the rent while he is there alone, it seems to me that he has been satisfying his sole obligation, although I can see the argument that you and he had an agreement to split the rent and you breached that agreement by moving out. In the final analysis, this dispute would turn on particular facts as put into evidence before a Judge. The other problem seems to be the landlord's. If he has been accepting rent from someone who is not on the lease, he may have created a tenancy directly with your boyfriend. To cover yourself, you should immediately notify the landlord that you are out and that you will not be renewing the lease. It will then be the landlord's problem to deal with your boyfriend, either as a squatter or as a tenant. Keep in mind that this advice is based purely on the little bit of information that you have given to me. There may be other factors that would change my opinion. Further, no one can rely on advice from an attorney who has not been retained. Since you have not retained an attorney in this case, before you take any further action, you should contact an attorney (either me or someone else) to discuss your matter in more detail. Only then will you be able to rely on the advice. I will be happy to assist you. However, you need to call me at 856-546-8010. If you mention LawGuru, there will be no charge for your first consultation. Good luck! Rob Gleaner