Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Virginia
The status of property in an apartment where I am on lease even after moving out
I moved out of an apt, in VA and left some of my furniture still being used by my roommate. We agreed that he would use the furn. and I would remove it before the lease expired (7 mths later). My roommate never signed a new lease solely in his name (although I supplied the paperwork to him to have my name taken off the current lease). I stopped paying rent when I moved out and he continued to pay the rent on his own. Now my ex-roommate left the state 1 month before the lease was set to expire (b/c he signed over the apt early to another party w/o my prior consent) and took my belongings with him out of state. Do I have rights to my things or its value? and Do I have to pay back rent to get my things b/c the lease remained in my name as well?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: The status of property in an apartment where I am on lease even after moving out
Of course, you have a right to your items of property(or to their value) with which your former roommate apparently absconded to parts unknown.
However, to commence an action against this miscreant for the return of your property, you'll need to locate him in his new state of residence in order to serve him with legal papers after having filed the suit in the appropriate court of that particular state.
As to your last question, I see no reason whatsoever as to why you should have to pay "back rent" in order to secure your property merely because the lease remained in your name until its expiration.
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