Early Termination Fee? California (apartment, lease agreement, tenant rights, rental)
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Hello. I live in the San Jacinto County, CA. We are breaking the lease early (move out is 11/15/13) and have provided over 30 days notice (informed 9/6/13). Landlord wants to charge us a $750 early termination fee as a cost/damage for the owner to procure new tenants. We understand and agree to pay rent until a new lease is signed or until our current lease ends (1/31/14), whichever occurs first.
The contract does not include any information about an early termination fee or any other specific fees in relation to breaking the lease early. In fact there is no clause for early termination at all. As far as I can tell the only mention of charging fees for damages is in relation to the inspection of the property upon vacating. The landlord is telling me the fee is from his company to the owner and then the owner is turning around and charging me for his fee. He is claiming that any fees or damages incurred to the owner from me breaking the lease can be charged from the owner.
What's legal, is the landlord can charge you rent until a new acceptable tenant is found, plus any advertising costs to get the place rented. It's called the landlord's duty to mitigate damages.
I'm wondering if $750 might actually be cheaper for you in the long run than waiting to see how long it takes for the LL to find another tenant. Without knowing what your actual rent is, I'm thinking you might want to snatch up this offer. Get it in writing. Make sure they aren't including your security deposit as part of the termination fees, which isn't legal. They can only charge rent and advertising until new tenant is found. Security deposit laws stay in place.
I am in a 3 year lease agreement. We stated off as friends and had a vebal aggrement. She was suppose to stay in my apartment for the three years while I stayed in her home. She came up with a 3 year lease agreement. We gave her $4600 for a deposit. But we movies in as is. She never conducted a walk through nor did she do anything to her house. She gave up the apartment and then came to ask for her home back. We have now sought out more sufficient and affordable housing.
Our question is which is less? The termination fee she is requesting is $2,300. Her clause states as follows section 23. Early termination tenants may, upon a written 30 day notice to the landlord, termite this agreement provided that the tanta pays a termination fee of $2,300 or the allow by law whichever is less. So how do we determine what is allowed by law.
I am in a 3 year lease agreement. We stated off as friends and had a vebal aggrement. She was suppose to stay in my apartment for the three years while I stayed in her home. She came up with a 3 year lease agreement. We gave her $4600 for a deposit. But we movies in as is. She never conducted a walk through nor did she do anything to her house. She gave up the apartment and then came to ask for her home back. We have now sought out more sufficient and affordable housing.
Our question is which is less? The termination fee she is requesting is $2,300. Her clause states as follows section 23. Early termination tenants may, upon a written 30 day notice to the landlord, termite this agreement provided that the tanta pays a termination fee of $2,300 or the allow by law whichever is less. So how do we determine what is allowed by law.
Termination fees aren't legal in CA. Read my earlier post in this thread.
Hello. I live in the San Jacinto County, CA. We are breaking the lease early (move out is 11/15/13) and have provided over 30 days notice (informed 9/6/13). Landlord wants to charge us a $750 early termination fee as a cost/damage for the owner to procure new tenants. We understand and agree to pay rent until a new lease is signed or until our current lease ends (1/31/14), whichever occurs first.
The contract does not include any information about an early termination fee or any other specific fees in relation to breaking the lease early. In fact there is no clause for early termination at all. As far as I can tell the only mention of charging fees for damages is in relation to the inspection of the property upon vacating. The landlord is telling me the fee is from his company to the owner and then the owner is turning around and charging me for his fee. He is claiming that any fees or damages incurred to the owner from me breaking the lease can be charged from the owner.
Is this legal?
Does the $750 fee terminates the lease with no their fees or payments? That may be cheaper for you than paying the lease until LL mitigates or your lease ends.
Unless that $750 early termination fee is actually written down in the lease as a termination fee it’s not legal. Doesn’t matter what agreement the LL and the PMC have. It’s not in your lease .....it’s not something that will hold up in court
Unless that $750 early termination fee is actually written down in the lease as a termination fee it’s not legal. Doesn’t matter what agreement the LL and the PMC have. It’s not in your lease .....it’s not something that will hold up in court
In CA, early termination fees are never legal - even if they're written in the lease.
No non-refundable fees of any kind are legal in CA. All fees are considered part of the security deposit, no matter what they're called, and are under the security deposit rules, and all of them must be refundable as security deposit money.
Tenants may break a lease in CA and can only be charged rent while the landlord can't find another tenant, and the landlord must make a reasonable effort to find a new tenant, and the courts have figured that shouldn't take longer than 30 days.
So, if you give 30 days notice and tell your landlord you will work with the landlord to show the unit during your 30 days, you shouldn't end up having to pay any extra rent after you move out.
Here is a good landlord -tenant guide written by CA Dept of Consumer Affairs that covers all of these tenant rights.
Tenants may break a lease in CA and can only be charged rent while the landlord can't find another tenant, and the landlord must make a reasonable effort to find a new tenant, and the courts have figured that shouldn't take longer than 30 days.
Please cite the case decision where you got that rule from.
Because the CA statutes impose no duty to mitigate under certain circumstances:
If the LL has complied with that statute he need do nothing with the rental and still be entitled to the rent until the lease expires.
You are absolutely incorrect. CA statues absolutely impose a duty to mitigate.
Under California law (Cal. Civ. Code § 1951.2), a landlord must make reasonable efforts to re-rent your unit—no matter what your reason for leaving—rather than charge you for the total remaining rent due under the lease.
The exceptions you are trying to use here, are only for situations where the tenant has sublet the property to someone else, and then still remains liable.
But, a landlord in CA can NEVER keep charging a tenant who has given notice to move and break a lease. Some states allow this, but CA does not.
I am in a 3 year lease agreement. We stated off as friends and had a vebal aggrement. She was suppose to stay in my apartment for the three years while I stayed in her home. She came up with a 3 year lease agreement. We gave her $4600 for a deposit. But we movies in as is. She never conducted a walk through nor did she do anything to her house. She gave up the apartment and then came to ask for her home back. We have now sought out more sufficient and affordable housing.
Our question is which is less? The termination fee she is requesting is $2,300. Her clause states as follows section 23. Early termination tenants may, upon a written 30 day notice to the landlord, termite this agreement provided that the tanta pays a termination fee of $2,300 or the allow by law whichever is less. So how do we determine what is allowed by law.
All the legal talk going on I'm going to ignore, I'm not in CA and don't have a clue on it. However, the more glaring issue IMO is she is asking for the home back and still wants the early termination fee? Doesn't add up. You don't pay the fee when the LL is requesting the property back, assuming you aren't in breach of the lease.
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