moved during lease; landlord may sell house

[MonaB]

What is the name of your state? Maryland

Hi all - any advice would be helpful!

I leased the top floor of a house and had to move out for an out-of-state job during a 12 month lease. I was not able to find a suitable renter in order to get out of the lease, so I am legally bound for the rest of the lease (4 months; I've already paid 3 and would still owe July rent).

However, there is a potential that the landlord could sell the house in June and there could be a new owner by July. My lease goes through the end of July, so if my landlord still owns the place in July I would still owe rent. However, do I have any obligation to the current landlord if the house sells in June? (ie., is it possible that I could owe rent for an apartment that the landlord no longer owns?!!) Would I have an obligation to the new owner?! It seems ridiculous that the new owner would take over my lease if I'm not living there...

Also, I understand that in leaving an apartment, the landlord is required to try to re-rent the apartment as soon as reasonably possible. If the landlord plans on selling, I question if a new renter is really wanted. For the past 3 months, I've been posting ads and flyers to try to find a new renter for the landlord (with the help of friends still in state). The landlord claims there are about 2 calls/week, but people "don't follow through"; I don't know what is meant by that. Does the tenant have any rights if the landlord is not really trying to re-rent the apartment? How much work is reasonable to expect of the landlord in searching for a new tenant?

Finally, the landlord is also making me still pay utilities (electric and gas) saying that light is needed to show the apartment at night. (but it's only been shown to potential renters times since I've moved out!) Are there any legal courses he can take if I just cancel the utilities for my apartment?

Any help or references in how to deal with the issue of being in a lease when a building sells (and I'm not living there) would be great.

[MonaB]

I just found out that the house is going up for public auction and on the auctioneer's site, my apartment is listed as "currently vacant" - so I guess my lease is not included in the auction. Perhaps my landlord is trying to collect July rent from me without telling me that the house has been sold.....
(I found out about the house sale from someone else)

[moburkes]

Is this a foreclosure auction?

The answer to your original question is YES, you would still owe, just as if you were still living there, the new owner is required by law the "assume" the current lease, and he would be responsible for returning your security deposit.

[MonaB]

thanks for the reply - I don't think it is a foreclosure auction.

The landlord is advertizing my apartment on the auction site as "vacant" - what happens if the current landlord does not let the new owner know that there is a lease on the apartment?

If I had been living there, could I have opted out of the lease once I found out the building was being sold?

[moburkes]

Originally Posted by MonaB

thanks for the reply - I don't think it is a foreclosure auction.

The landlord is advertizing my apartment as "vacant" - what happens if the current landlord does not let the new owner know that there is a lease on the apartment?

If I had been living there, could I have opted out of the lease once I found out the building was being sold?

No, not just for that reason, unless your lease agreement states that you can teminate the lease without penalty if LL sells the property.

[MonaB]

Thanks for the advice - As I understand it, my lease should go to the new owner along with my security deposit.

However, I have a feeling that the landlord may not tell me about the sale and try to collect July rent from me (thinking that I am ignorant about the house being sold). I did not find out about the sale from the landlord, but from a tenant in another unit of the house. (I currently live in another state, but am friendly with this other tenant.)

Does this mean that if I find out from the other tenant that the house sells, the current landlord has no right to try to collect my July rent?

Hypothetically if the house does sell, should I tell the landlord that I will only deal with the new owner in terms of rent/security deposit? (Eg, if the landlord says "I'll collect your July rent and make sure this gets to the new owner?", can I disagree to this?)

If the landlord sells the house, but does not include my lease in the sale, do I legally owe anyone for July rent?

Sorry for all the hypotheticals - I feel like the landlord could be trying to be a bit shady in not telling me about the sale and I want to be prepared for what comes next (I'd love to be able to save a month in rent; if I can't, I want it to legally go to the proper person.)