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If you give the tenant the option of paying a lease break fee that's fine. It just needs to be written in the lease. If there is no lease break fee clause you must mitigate.
Based on how he worded the question I am guessing the OP is the tenant. Read your lease and see what it says but if it doesn't mention early termination then you pay rent until the unit is filled with a replacement tenant. Most break fees in a lease will state they either do or don't release you from the lease agreement. If the early termination clause states it doesn't release you then you pay the fee plus rent and if clause does release you then you pay the fee only.
Just wondering what some of the more seasoned LL do about this issue.
They'll avoid the question altogether and not have long term leases at all.
Simple month to month agreements work well.
If you screen well you'll get good tenants.
If you do what you're supposed to regarding upkeep you'll keep those good tenants.
Well, you'll keep them for as long as rent is fair and they want/need to be in the area.
When they have a reason to leave... they'll leave whatever the lease terms are.
Focus on having good relations so you can know when you'll need to find new tenants.
I did not put in a lease penalty fee since i am not quite experienced.
But this had turned out to be an issue. At the same time I do not want to make things difficult to turn away tenants.
Just wondering what some of the more seasoned LL do about this issue.
You can mitigate
Or
You can have a lease break fee and tenant walks away
I'm not sure why this is a issue. Most LLs tend to mitigate as that's the default housing laws for California. But you can do a lease break fee and you and the tenant are done no mitigation.
My tenants all give notice. I had a few yahoos in the past but for the last 8-10 years I screen the hell out of it and my leases are 9 pages long.
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