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Please Help: Should I sign a sub lease agreement given these facts? ...

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JasonRelics

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NY
I APPRECIATE any help!! :):)
I don't know the technical rules in NY. All I know is that tons of people sublease without any reference to the law, and that law is hardly ever enforced, and if a civil court ever discovers an illegal sublease agreement they give the sub-tenant over 6 months to move out just on squatters rights. I know plenty of people who have lived in apartments for decades and without issues on subleases with a main tenant, without the sub-tenants name on the lease nor without telling the landlord of the building. It's as common here in New York City as JAYWALKING. I know it's technically important that the sublease agreement be legal if I ever want a court to enforce the stipulations of the sublease agreement, but I don't want to make waves just to find out that the lease doesn't even permit a sublease in the first place and I lose the place, then the tenants simply sublease the place to someone who won't complain and nag over seeing the lease and assuring that the sublease agreement is legal. I need this place, and it's perfect for me. It's important! My concerns are the following:

I ve been offered a sublease agreement for a room in a 3 br apartment. The sublease agreement is between myself (sub-tenant) and person X (tenant, with name on the lease). There are 4 names on the lease. Person X, Person X s brother Person Y, and both of their parents, Person A and B. My sublease agreement does not mention anyone besides myself and person X. Is this a problem?

Person X is MOVING OUT in two weeks over 1000 miles away to California, but is keeping his name on the lease. Is it prudent for me to have an agreement with Person X when Person X won t be living in the apartment, nor even in my state?

Person A and B, the parents, DONT live in the apartment. So when I move in, the three bedrooms will be occupied by me, person Y, and one other unknown subletter. What rights do the parents, person A and B, have over me? What about Person Y, the brother? I don t know if there is already a pre-existing contract between the tenants over who pays what portion of the overall rent for the apartment. Does this effect me?

My fear is that I don t want to sign an agreement with person X, person X moves, just to have Person Y or person A or person B changing things on me (i.e. my rent, what is included in the rent, what rights i have to the room, etc) via a bait and switch, and Person X will be no where to be seen to be brought to civil court to enforce the stipulations of the contract.
SO WHAT DO I DO? Should I change the contract before signing it? Do I have to get ALL of the names on the lease to sign my sublease agreement? Does none of this even matter since the contract might not be legal in the first place? What about the hundreds of thousands of sublease agreements being used right now in New York City that aren't legal because they aren't permitted by law or a previously agreed upon lease agreement? Are ALL THOSE equally worthless? Surely the contract must be enforceable in this context even if it technically isn't allowed by law or previously agreed upon lease. So what do you say?
 


FarmerJ

Senior Member
Personally If it was my property and I forbade sublets in my leases I don't care what the others you spoke of claim happened and I cant imagine it taking 6 months to get a tenant out , after all they don't have a lease with the owner so the terms of the lease they had with anyone who sublet to them wont matter , they aren't squatters they are not my tenants and Id have no problem taking steps to get rid of them starting with a simple notice that meets state law telling them to get out. I suggest you simply stay away from this nightmare because sooner or later the LL will really care about what goes on and will take the steps needed to just clear every one out. ( it doesn't matter what a subleasor promises you in a lease agreement if a owner can and does take steps to get the subleasor out and sends to you proper notice to get out because any bone you have to pick legally as a sub leasee would be with the one who sublet to you the sub leasor and no matter what here if the owner learns your real name and sends you proper notice telling you to get the H out of his property and has to take you to court, it will be your name on the summons and not only will you get the privilege of explaining to a court what part of the notice you could not understand but there will be this lovely file tied to your name that other landlords in the future will learn of when they have you screened and they don't even have to read the court file to get any details, they will learn you were given proper notice to get out and you didn't and they most likely will decide that if one other landlord in the past had to take you to court to make you get out then you are too high a risk and they will send your application to file 13 ( which can lead to you only being able to rent from LLs who don't care because the housing they offer is filled with less than angelic tenants or your only being able to find outright craphole apartments.
 

BL

Senior Member
http://www.ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/pdfs/publications/Tenant_Rights_2011.pdf

Look at the real definition of sublease.

What this involves is roommates.

While NY Law states a "tenant" can have Family member OR one other occupant , this is not always so,and not in this case.

Find a legal rental.
 

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