Somebody ... Help ... Please

I have entered into a 1 year contract with ----- for an apartment for $650 month from 8/4/03 to 8/4/04 with the exception of the loss of my employment, I will honor this contract.

Signed by myself & landlord

One month into the lease, I got a rommate. On 9/11/03 this was in my mailbox. "The rent for each additional roommate other than immediate family members will be $50 a week."

Not signed or agreed by either party.

The apartment is not worth the extra $50 per week. I told the landlord that we would be moving. They said that I have a legal and binding contract.

Do I have to pay this? Is my lease even legal? Can I move without any recourse? They have no personal information on me except my name and my employer.

I have found another place and need to give them an answer today.

Any help is appreciated.

[HomeGuru]

Originally posted by knewbetter
I have entered into a 1 year contract with ----- for an apartment for $650 month from 8/4/03 to 8/4/04 with the exception of the loss of my employment, I will honor this contract.

Signed by myself & landlord

One month into the lease, I got a rommate. On 9/11/03 this was in my mailbox. "The rent for each additional roommate other than immediate family members will be $50 a week."

Not signed or agreed by either party.

The apartment is not worth the extra $50 per week. I told the landlord that we would be moving. They said that I have a legal and binding contract.

Do I have to pay this? Is my lease even legal? Can I move without any recourse? They have no personal information on me except my name and my employer.

I have found another place and need to give them an answer today.

Any help is appreciated.

**A: the answers are contained in your written lease and the prevailing L/T law.
When you read these documents you will see that L is correct.

[CAGuy25]

I would say that no, you can't break your lease due to his stipulation. However, in most states it is up to the landlord to determine whether you can sublet your apt, this being the case, odds are that you will have to agree to the extra $50 a month in order to have your roommate. This shouldn't be too big of a hassle since it only comes out to $25 per person. And better than being stuck with the entire rent yourself, especially with the job situation.

I'm sure that that is what HG would've said if he/she/it intended to actually give advice rather than make obvious recommendations that most people coming on here are trying to avoid (i.e. reading through laws and trying to interpret).

[annefan]

Originally posted by CAGuy25
I would say that no, you can't break your lease due to his stipulation. However, in most states it is up to the landlord to determine whether you can sublet your apt, this being the case, odds are that you will have to agree to the extra $50 a month in order to have your roommate. This shouldn't be too big of a hassle since it only comes out to $25 per person. And better than being stuck with the entire rent yourself, especially with the job situation.

I'm sure that that is what HG would've said if he/she/it intended to actually give advice rather than make obvious recommendations that most people coming on here are trying to avoid (i.e. reading through laws and trying to interpret).

What? You don't seem to know what you are talking about either. Any recourse (or non-recourse) will be found within the written pages of the tenant's lease agreement...as HomeGuru wrote. And if people come on this forum looking for someone else to interpret their rights by law, they won't find it. They have two options, they can accept the statutes and laws as given (if correct) and study them to determine what recourse they might have, or they can pay an attorney to interpret their rights and spell it out for them in street language.

[CAGuy25]

lol "street language". This is an advice site, and telling someone to read the law amounts to making this site pointless. Yes, it's true it will be contained in the pages of their lease, but as I stated, most states and most leases by that measure state that it is up to the discretion of the L as to whether sublets will be allowed and that in most cases the L has to approve the sublet.

Oh and stating "...written pages of the tenant's lease..." is repetitive, last time I checked most formal L/T leases are written.

Originally posted by HomeGuru
**A: the answers are contained in your written lease and the prevailing L/T law.
When you read these documents you will see that L is correct.

My lease is quoted on my forum. I typed it in. Word for word. That's it, one paragraph! The landlord typed it up. That is why I want to know if it is a legal and binding contract.

There isn't anything else to read. That one paragraph is the lease!

Am I stuck?

Originally posted by CAGuy25
I would say that no, you can't break your lease due to his stipulation. However, in most states it is up to the landlord to determine whether you can sublet your apt, this being the case, odds are that you will have to agree to the extra $50 a month in order to have your roommate. This shouldn't be too big of a hassle since it only comes out to $25 per person. And better than being stuck with the entire rent yourself, especially with the job situation.

I'm sure that that is what HG would've said if he/she/it intended to actually give advice rather than make obvious recommendations that most people coming on here are trying to avoid (i.e. reading through laws and trying to interpret).

It is $50 per week, $200 month, not $50 per month. My place was advertised for $650 per month. If the landlord would've rented the place to a couple, the rent would still have been $650 per month.

What my first post says is my lease word for word. It is one paragraph long, typed by the landlord. There is nothing else to read as HG suggested. That is why I'm here.

I'm not even sure if my lease is legal! Do you know?

[annefan]

Originally posted by CAGuy25
lol "street language". This is an advice site, and telling someone to read the law amounts to making this site pointless.

-What a laugh.


Yes, it's true it will be contained in the pages of their lease, but as I stated, most states and most leases by that measure state that it is up to the discretion of the L as to whether sublets will be allowed and that in most cases the L has to approve the sublet.

-Ok, then, I will infuse the HG Challenge...list for me, please, that majority of states that leaves discretion of subletting to the landlord, when the issue is not specified in a lease.

Oh and stating "...written pages of the tenant's lease..." is repetitive, last time I checked most formal L/T leases are written.

-One can never unnecessarily reinforce (repeat) the difference between a written a lease and a verbal agreement.

Originally posted by HomeGuru
**A: the answers are contained in your written lease and the prevailing L/T law.
When you read these documents you will see that L is correct.

My lease is quoted on my forum. I typed it in. Word for word. That's it, one paragraph! The landlord typed it up. That is why I want to know if it is a legal and binding contract.

There isn't anything else to read. That one paragraph is the lease!

Am I stuck?

[annefan]

Originally posted by knewbetter

That is why I want to know if it is a legal and binding contract.

The contract is legal and binding, however, the landlord eliminated MANY items which would could have protected himself as well as you. You are not considered a tenant-at-will because you do have a written lease....a very, very vaguely written lease.

[JETX]

Okay, lets get back on track after being lead astray by this CAGag idiot....

"I have entered into a 1 year contract with ----- for an apartment for $650 month from 8/4/03 to 8/4/04 with the exception of the loss of my employment, I will honor this contract."
*** Okay.

"Signed by myself & landlord"
*** Okay.

"One month into the lease, I got a rommate. On 9/11/03 this was in my mailbox. "The rent for each additional roommate other than immediate family members will be $50 a week."
*** And there is your problem. You are not allowed to sublease (or get anyone not signed on the lease) to move in with you. The landlord has the right to impose this.

"Not signed or agreed by either party."
*** And neither was your sub-lease.

"The apartment is not worth the extra $50 per week. I told the landlord that we would be moving. They said that I have a legal and binding contract."
*** The landlord is correct. You cannot breach the agreement (implied or actual), then claim that the other party not accepting YOUR breach is a breach on their part.

"Do I have to pay this?"
*** Yes.

"Is my lease even legal?"
*** That would require a complete review of your ACTUAL lease, however, nothing in your post would imply that the lease was not valid.

"Can I move without any recourse?"
*** No.

"They have no personal information on me except my name and my employer."
*** I assume from this statement, that you are 'threatening' to breach, which contradicts your first statement on this thread ("I will honor this contract"). If you do breach the agreement, the landlord (if he/she wants) can find you very easily.

"I have found another place and need to give them an answer today."
*** Answer as to what. If you breach your current lease, the landlord has the right to come after you for his 'damages' caused by your breach

And by the way... one of the reasons that HG advised you the way he did.... is you didn't follow the rules of this forum.... and even went out of your way to violate them. Can you read the BIG RED letters at the top of the screen???

[CAGuy25]

Originally posted by annefan
-One can never unnecessarily reinforce (repeat) the difference between a written a lease and a verbal agreement.

Last time I checked, you don't sign a verbal agreement.

JETX, you basically reiterated everything I said, so that being the case, that would make you an idiot as well. Or maybe even moreso considering that you assume that his lease has a clause in it stating that sublets must be approved, when you do not know that for a fact.

Knewbetter, I looked in past posts and can't seem to find the paragraph you mention which is the lease.

[annefan]

Originally posted by CAGuy25
Last time I checked, you don't sign a verbal agreement.

JETX, you basically reiterated everything I said, so that being the case, that would make you an idiot as well. Or maybe even moreso considering that you assume that his lease has a clause in it stating that sublets must be approved, when you do not know that for a fact.

Knewbetter, I looked in past posts and can't seem to find the paragraph you mention which is the lease.

HolyBeejeezers! If I came across (in my past thread, some know what it was) this idiotic....smack me! hard!!!!!

Originally posted by annefan
HolyBeejeezers! If I came across (in my past thread, some know what it was) this idiotic....smack me! hard!!!!!

AnneFan:

This is my entire lease

"I have entered into a 1 year contract with ----- for an apartment for $650 month from 8/4/03 to 8/4/04 with the exception of the loss of my employment, I will honor this contract."

Signed by myself & landlord

One month into the lease, I got a rommate. On 9/11/03 this was in my mailbox. "The rent for each additional roommate other than immediate family members will be $50 a week."

Not signed or agreed by either party.

You know, I came here for some legitimate help and I must say, there are some users on this site that are arrogant and misinformed and make a mockery of a site ... that people like myself think is legitimate help. I'm not talking about you, I'm talking about some of the others.

[annefan]

And if you do a simple search of your state's landlord/tenant laws & statutes, you will find what rights and provisions you possess under your written lease and what it contains or doesn't contain. You don't necessarily have to search the internet for the laws, I guarantee you that your local court house (or another within driving distance) offers the same information, in written format, in their law library. Other than that, if you want your rights broken down to you in layman's terms, (I apologize if I sound contrite but) that is simply what attorneys are paid for.