Landlord let boyfriend move in

[IHTS]

I saw it advertised in an email thread on a listserv and also on craigs list. I don't know if it was advertised anywhere else. It said female seek 2 female roommates.

 

[quincy]

It's unclear to me if you're trying to be light hearted or mean spirited, thank you for your response either way.

I am only mean spirited occasionally.

I don't see from what you have posted that you have any way to get out of a written agreement that you read and signed. You are expected to understand the terms of any agreement before signing the agreement.

What is written in the lease agreement is what is binding. What is said before and after about the agreement is (generally) not enough to allow for the breaking of the written agreement. But all facts matter.

Approaching the roommate directly and letting her know you are uncomfortable with the living arrangement, however, is the best way I can see that you can get out of the lease.

You could also rely on the lawyers you spoke with personally who, apparently, have read the lease agreement, understand the facts, and who suggested you have legal grounds to break the lease. I don't see any legal grounds from here but it is possible they are hidden in how the agreement is written.

Good luck.

 

[IHTS]

How was this condo advertised? In writing? Where? And yes, I am going somewhere with this.

I saw it advertised in an email thread on a listserv and also on craigs list. I don't know if it was advertised anywhere else. It said female seek 2 female roommates.

 

[IHTS]

I am only mean spirited occasionally.

I don't see from what you have posted that you have any way to get out of a written agreement that you read and signed. You are expected to understand the terms of any agreement before signing the agreement.

What is written in the lease agreement is what is binding. What is said before and after about the agreement is (generally) not enough to allow for the breaking of the written agreement. But all facts matter.

Approaching the roommate directly and letting her know you are uncomfortable with the living arrangement, however, is the best way I can see that you can get out of the lease.

You could also rely on the lawyers you spoke with personally who, apparently, have read the lease agreement, understand the facts, and who suggested you have legal grounds to break the lease. I don't see any legal grounds from here but it is possible they are hidden in how the agreement is written.

Good luck.

Thank you for your genuinely helpful response. What about the part of the lease that states I will pay 1/3 of utilities if 3 people live here and 1/2 of utilities if 2 people live here. There are 4 people living here. Does that not help me at all? Either way, I agree that the best way is to approach her directly. Just looking for some shred of legal support, just in case.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Advise her you feel it is only fair to split utilities 4 ways. Advise her you are not paying utilities because the lease, as written, does not assign you responsibility to contribute.

 

[quincy]

Thank you for your genuinely helpful response. What about the part of the lease that states I will pay 1/3 of utilities if 3 people live here and 1/2 of utilities if 2 people live here. There are 4 people living here. Does that not help me at all? Either way, I agree that the best way is to approach her directly. Just looking for some shred of legal support, just in case.

The agreement on the utilities will probably not help you break the lease, if that is what you are asking. It appears you agreed to pay at least 1/3 of the utilities.

You could always argue that you should be responsible for only 1/4 of the utility costs with the fourth person living in the condo with you, a more supportable argument if this fourth person is on the lease.

The Craigslist ad, by the way, does not say whether or not a male might be sharing the quarters with you - just that two female roommates are being sought. Boyfriends come and go, though. Perhaps you will find that this particular boyfriend goes and does not return. It is something to hope for, I guess.

 

[TinkerBelleLuvr]

Does the current WRITTEN lease state THREE roommates? And yes, I am going somewhere with the advertisement.

Rentals that are of the roommate variety that specified a gender CAN be taken into consideration when the terms change. The advertisement was for FEMALE roommates. What does a reasonable man (or in this case woman) expect the gender of the roommates? In this case, FEMALE. When it comes to a room sharing situation, gender CAN be taken into consideration.

To the OP, talk with the landlord. If she doesn't see the light, then the landlord HAS broken the lease by allowing a 4th person to be there. In that case, take it to an attorney. There are exceptions to normal landlord/tenant situation with an owner occupied shared unit.

In this case, WHO does the landlord expect to pay for the UTILITIES that the 4th person incurs? Additional wear and tear? Etc.

What does the lease say about guests?

 

[IHTS]

Does the current WRITTEN lease state THREE roommates? And yes, I am going somewhere with the advertisement.

Rentals that are of the roommate variety that specified a gender CAN be taken into consideration when the terms change. The advertisement was for FEMALE roommates. What does a reasonable man (or in this case woman) expect the gender of the roommates? In this case, FEMALE. When it comes to a room sharing situation, gender CAN be taken into consideration.

To the OP, talk with the landlord. If she doesn't see the light, then the landlord HAS broken the lease by allowing a 4th person to be there. In that case, take it to an attorney. There are exceptions to normal landlord/tenant situation with an owner occupied shared unit.

In this case, WHO does the landlord expect to pay for the UTILITIES that the 4th person incurs? Additional wear and tear? Etc.

What does the lease say about guests?

No, the lease is pretty generic and does not specify number of roommates. As for long term guests, it says something along the lines of needing written consent from the landlord. So that's not helpful, since she is the landlord. But yeah, an ad that says a female is seeking 2 female roommates didn't really lead me to feel it was necessary to ask if there would be an extra male there. Maybe that's my mistake. I would hope that she would be reasonable regardless of the legal terms, because she knows that this is not what I agreed to. Further, I'm paying 1/3 of rent, utilities, etc. when there are 4 people here. I'd rather move out than pay 1/4 rent though!

 

[TinkerBelleLuvr]

You will be best served by going to an attorney if the landlord doesn't have the boyfriend move out. An attorney will know the climate of the court.