I've been renting a room month to month... (sublet, apartment)

[RHMAT57]

Hi,


I want to move out of the bedroom I am renting on a month to month basis because the roommate is a nightmare. She moved in her sister without letting me know suddenly wants to charge for utilities after 4 months (she at first mentioned it was all included), she lost her job and possibly her US Visa amongst other things and I need to move out!

I am wondering how much time in advance do I have to give? I never signed a contract/agreement or anything and I'm obviously not in the lease. I never put down a deposit because she didn't ask. I pretty much just pay her the 5th of every month using a check so I have evidence. I told the girl I was going to move out but ideally I want to do it at the end of August because I don't want to live another month here and give money to her that I can save towards renting a new place. Do I have to give something like 30 days notice if I don't have any lease/contract with her? Can I give less of a notice?

I've never even met or spoken to the landlord in the 4 months I have been living here...

Please give me some advice?

Thanks!

[HudsonCoNJ]

If you have no written agreement you can leave whenever you like. Any notice you give is just you being courteous. Even if you had some sort of verbal agreement, that is not likely to hold up well should it ever go to court.

[Blue biker]

Since you have no deposit, there isn't much she could do. I rent a room out in my house had a tenant move out on the 28th of one month. No notice, no nothing, gave me this excuse she had to take care of her mother. I get a deposit but gave it back, just didn't want the hassles.

[reenzz]

Even without a contract, New Jersey state law requires you to give a WRITTEN full calendar month as notice.

If you gave notice today, your notice becomes effective September 1 for a move out date of September 30th.

You could move out whenever you want, but you owe rent for the full month of September.

And she CAN sue you for failure to give proper notice and failure to pay rent.

[GoodSchoolols]

Originally Posted by reenzz

Even without a contract, New Jersey state law requires you to give a WRITTEN full calendar month as notice.

If you gave notice today, your notice becomes effective September 1 for a move out date of September 30th.

You could move out whenever you want, but you owe rent for the full month of September.

And she CAN sue you for failure to give proper notice and failure to pay rent.

Are you sure? I never heard of that. Could you reference the law you cite?

[j0nx]

From http://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions..._lti/lease.pdf

"Notice to Terminate the Lease
A month-to-month tenant must give written notice of lease termination at least one full month
prior to moving."

OR

http://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions..._lti/t_i_r.pdf

"Month-to-month leases renew automatically unless the tenant or landlord acts
to end the lease. A tenant may terminate a month-to-month lease (or any rental
agreement that does not have a specific term) by providing a written notice one
month in advance of the time that the renewed rental period would start. For
example if a tenant’s rent is due on January 15th the tenant must give the landlord
notice on or before December 15th if the tenant wants to move out before the
new rental period begins on the 15th of the next month"

[GoodSchoolols]

But there is no contact to rent, so i am not sure that law would apply

[jaymoney]

Rental contracts can be oral. And since money has been exchanged in the past for rent, it's difficult to say that both parties are not in some kind of contract.

[jaymoney]

"A landlord-tenant relationship is formed when a landlord allows another person
to use a dwelling unit for a specifi ed period of time in return for rent. A dwelling
unit may be an apartment, a house, a room or a mobile home or mobile home space.
Parties to a lease must be at least 18 years old and mentally competent. (1)

A lease may be either oral or written. If written, it must be in plain language. (2)
This means that it must be written so that an average person can understand it."
http://www.state.nj.us/dca/divisions..._lti/t_i_r.pdf

[Blue biker]

The OP's "landlord" could open a bigger can of worms trying to sue the OP. Does the "landlord" declare the income from renting the room? Is the "landlord" allowed to sublet under their own rental contract?? Really the OP can just walk away. It seems the person she shares the apt with has changed the agreement moving her sister in and wanting to charge for utilities.

I really doubt if the OP's "landlord" would take her to court over this. It's not like renting an entire apt.