Breaking a Lease

Two approaches - There are plenty of landlord horror stories. If you have a tenant dispute, the best approach is to try to get out of the lease amicably (see advice, below). Start looking for another place to live. If that's really impossible, you should contact a lawyer immediately. The details of the dispute will determine your rights and options.

Ground Rules - If you're considering breaking a lease, you should check your lease to see if there is any release clause. If there is, it will detail the rules and responsibilities for breaking the lease. Typically, there will be a penalty of one or two months rent. If not, the prevailing local and state laws will apply. These vary drastically from city to city and you should consult the relevant tenant law for your locality.

Telling the landlord - If you're going to break the lease, notify your landlord as early as possible and try to negotiate a settlement. NEVER just leave and stop paying rent--it's about the only thing you can do to really get into trouble. The landlord can damage your credit report by reporting your breach of contract to a credit reporting agency and you are also subject to legal action.

Abandonment - If you leave the residence and still continue to pay rent, you can still be subject to legal action for abandonment since most leases state that you have to maintain a residence in the domicile.

Roommates - It can get stickier if you have roommates: if multiple people are listed on the lease, all three are generally responsible for the total rent even if one roommate leaves. Of course this varies depending on the terms of the lease and the prevailing law of your municipality.

Helping make the situation better - Finding new tenants is a great inconvenience to your landlords since they lose income while the apartment is vacant; they have to advertise, show the apartment, and sign a new tenant to a lease. If you can help your landlord find a new tenant, he will be more likely to let you off easier. Also, in many states, the tenant law requires that your landlord make a best faith effort to find a new tenant and prevents the landlord from receiving two rents for the same place.

Contact a real estate lawyer - If you can't negotiate a reasonable settlement or have difficulty with the complexities of your lease, make sure to seek professional legal advice.