How to break an apt lease (attorney, landlord, live)

[lindababy5]

and by surrender does that mean I am no longer held to the terms of the lease? further, if this is the case, why are they forcing surrender of the keys if accepting them means I am free from the lease?

[mathjak107]

first off consult an attorney for the proper protocal when doing this... there are procedures you must follow...

its used where a a tenant wants to break a lease and they will normally be held to the lease ....

it counts on the fact that when the tenant sends a registered letter to a management company and states they will be surrendering the keys and the apartment on such and such a date off in the future that the landlord un-knowingly wont get back to you and say no you cant as most dont respond to the letter..

when the day comes and they accept those keys back they have accepted your terms of just surrendering the apartment and getting the lease terminated.....
usually by the time they realize what they did its to late...

dont do this on your own, it requires alot of specific wording , timing and protocal... use an attorney

[vori1973]

I have similar situation , after sending letter to landlord that I'm moving out , I got letter that I have to give keys to the supper and I still have to continue all obligations (paying rent ) for the apartment.
So I gave keys as requested , now for the past 2 weeks nobody contacted me in order to see an apartment. Today they told me that I only gave them one set of keys .
Now interest thing is its a very hot neighborhood and there will be no problem to rent it even $200 more than I currently paying. I have some information that some of te managers want to sell it and make profit , so having someone like me that will keep paying rent makes it perfect since market is bad plus I know that this coop building do not get mortgage approval .

What should I do ?

I have 2 security deposits , I'm willing even to lose one of the just get out of this lease.

[mathjak107]

sending a letter to the super isnt the same as the above, thats why its critical that you use an attorney familiar with the process... its all about the words used in the letter ..... im confused though, they cant hold you to the lease and take possesion of the apartment .... they cant have it both ways.. they can take the keys from you if you ask them to help you sublet it to fulfil your obligation , or they can take one set of keys to try to show it on your behalf and find a new tenant.


what they cant do is demand the keys and hold you to the lease... its either your apartment or theirs, no double dipping allowed.

if it was me id let them take the keys, wait for a bill and then go get an attorney to set them straight that your obligation ended the day they took possesion by taking away your keys..

they cant so much as go in to the apartment to paint and ready it for re-rental unless its on your behalf and with your permission.... you would be responsible only until the time they went in to make ready for the next tenant and then they are deemed having taken back the apartment from you from that day forward.

[vori1973]

Thanks, how can I be sure that they accepted keys .
The problem is that I'm dealing with managers that have real estate licenses and getting kickbacks from rents or sell. I even spoke with one of them 2 months ago and she told me to write letter that I'd like to switch month- to month since I may be need to move fast.
2 weeks ago I checked and she said that this letter she didn't got and I have to write letter that I need to move out. Now they claiming that this is short notice .

Since super work for them he can claim that he never got 2nd pair of keys .

For example now they say I only return one set of keys , now there is no documents that can prove that I got 2 set of keys since than I rented it 6 years ago I was single and was living alone.
So today I'm going to bring super another pair of keys.

How can I prove that they have possession on the apartment ?

[mathjak107]

i guess write up a receipt that they are taking possesion of the apartment by taking the keys back and basically keeping you from gaining entrance. have them sign it....


im no lawyer but that should stand up very well in court if they try to sue you for the rent after that date.

[lindababy5]

I'm sorry, I hope I don't seem totally obtuse...If I write them a letter saying I'm surrendering the keys and vacating, and they don't respond to the negative, I'm free of the lease?

[mathjak107]

basically yes but there is more wording and detail that goes along,,,, it has to be mailed 45 days before and sent return receipt....

my ex wife did it but i didnt see the origional letter so im not sure of the exact format.... my son is an attorney and did it for her.

[lindababy5]

Where would I find the proper wording? I googled around but haven't found anything of help. Would you know (and I would like to thank you very much for your help, thus far!)?

[mathjak107]

You wont find it googling.... thats why i say you really need an attorney who knows from these matters to do it right....

its one of those things that works because when the right wording is used it exploits loopholes in our laws and shrewd attorneys know how to manipulate that.

its like my son was telling me that shrewd lawyers have been exploiting the wording in leases that forbid renovations and modifications in an apartment to the extent that if someone changed a light fixture in an apartment then its grounds for eviction for breaking the terms of the lease and they can be evicted...

judges have been forced to uphold the law and evict rent controlled and rent stabilized tenants for merly a fixture or faucet change as un-ethical landlords try to get them out.. very un-ethical but none the less the law .

all this stuff is streching interpretation of things and so you really cant google it for a format.