Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in North Carolina

After signing a lease with a realty company to take over a tenant's lease, i was not approved following a credit check. Now the company has taken my security deposit but says I "have to" find a co-signer, which I initially expressed was not an option for me, or find someone to sublet the apartment. They will not return my security deposit (which they took at signing), and have insisted I'm legally bound by the contract, but that without finding a new renter, or paying six months in advance, or bringing in a co-signer, they will not let me live in the apartment. They haven't even given me copies of the signed contract, though i have electronic copies of the forms without my signature. Is this legal? What are my options?


Asked on 6/25/13, 6:17 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Kenneth Love Ken Love Law

Hopefully you already got a key. If the property manager says that the lease is a binding contract then it is binding two ways. If they refuse to give you the security deposit back, they have to allow you to move in. Now, if the lease you sign stated the conditions you mentioned "pay 6 months in advance or get a co-signer, ect..." then you may be out of luck as they would be a condition of the lease.

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Answered on 6/26/13, 4:36 am


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