landlord's penalty fee/collection agency

Hi,

I opted out early from my 12-month apartment lease when I bought a new home, and now my former landlord is seeking to collect the "penalty" for breaking my lease early, which is two months rent (about $1700). At the advice of my lawyer who handled my house closing, he said don't pay them anything, because it would be unlikely that any lawyer would take on their case and come after me. However, now my former landlord threatens to turn it over to a collection agency and put it on my credit record--which up until now has been unblemished. My apartment literally moved with each step my upstairs neighbor took (in fact, a construction company was hired to remove the upstairs balcony because it was "unstructurally sound"), rain water from the hurricane came through a previously and poorly repaired hole in the ceiling and onto my furniture, cigarette smoke poured in from the downstairs neighbor, and they didn't adhere to their fire/safety precautions by checking and fixing all outside lights within 24 hours (it took 3 phone calls and over a month). What are my options here; do I have any ammunition or way to prevent this from going on my record?

Thank you.

It's possible that you could make a case for cosntructive eviction. Learn more about your rights by reading the sections on this website's home page dealing with landlord/tenant law under Real Estate -- specifically the sections on compliance with local housing codes, constructive eviction, etc. You might be able to file a complaint with the small claims court if the above applies to you. I'm a little concerned about the advice the attorney gave you; what does he say about the landlord's recent action? Unless you can make a case for constructive eviction I would think you owe the money; if it goes on your credit report -- that's pretty bad news. Think about the repercussions of your next step before acting.