Apartment Divorce Question (lease, month-to-month, tenants)

[wickerpark2016]

Hello

Me and my spouse have had a up and down relationship the past couple years we have lived at our apartment for three years and are considered good tenants never paid the rent late.

You would never know we had issues no fighting. Last year we tried to separate and spouse moved out for six months and ended up moving back in. We let owner know one month before that our relationship was not going well and he did not have a problem with the moving out as long as lease did not change we both remained on lease. Owner also had no problem when spouse moved back in.

We were embarrassed of our situation and thought it would never happen again. Our lease ends in three weeks and we decided to re-lease but we are not sure our relationship will last. Spouse is thinking of moving again for final time and we will divorce. But due to personal reasons we feel we do not need to tell landlord spouse needs three months to look for new place. We both individually can afford apartment. I plan on staying for full year alone.

Is it wrong for us to sign lease and not tell landlord that we are unsure if spouse will be living the full year? Do we have a right to privacy and let the landlord know a month before the spouse knows for certian he is moving out?

Part of the reason I am asking is because I want to stay in the apartment for another year and my spouse stated they do not care if they are on lease we do not argue over any financial things and it is a non issue.

Is it wrong for us to not give the landlord a heads up like " spouse may be moving out in three months" so we can secure the lease and know one of us has a place to live for the next year?

Is it better to let landlord know what is going on when signing lease or just give landlord a one month notice if and when spouse decides rto move out?

Not sure if landlord will act different because this is the second time spouse may move out.

Also I believe that if a spouse or roomate moves out technically i yt is breaking the lease.

[wickerpark2016]

I am a nervous nancy.

[1AngryTaxPayer]

If they get their rent why would they care?

[LongAndLow]

Being on the lease means you are financially responsible for the rent, and that you are permitted to live in the apartment. It does not mean that you are forced to physically live there. It's not a prison. I don't see how it would be breaking the lease. People get divorced and separate all the time. A landlord cannot somehow force you to live together because you have a lease.

Yes, you are entitled to privacy. You don't have to tell anyone the state of your relationship, or what might happen with it in the next year. It is not the business of the landlord.

The thing you cannot do is bring someone else to live in the apartment without the landlord's permission.

As long as you are able to pay the rent after your spouse leaves, you are fine.

[Jenkay]

Can you go month-to-month?

[wickerpark2016]

Originally Posted by 1AngryTaxPayer

If they get their rent why would they care?

yes that is what spouse and friends said I may have just been over thinking.

I was thinking maybe because if it happens it would be the second time (same person) and I am not sure if it would become an announce to the owner or building manager it is a small building and we will have to schedule a move out. But rationally thinking as long as they get there money it should not be a problem.

[wickerpark2016]

Originally Posted by Jenkay

Can you go month-to-month?

really good building, good price, great nieghborhood. hard to find better deal. I want to stay.

[oddstray]

I agree, it would never occur to me to inform a landlord of the state of my relationships.

But if you think that might cause problems, maybe offer to be solely on the lease for the next year and that both of you will still be living there for the foreseeable future.. Then it doesn't matter to the landlord whether your partner stays or goes. It just means you're responsible for the rent, which you intend to be anyway.

[wickerpark2016]

Originally Posted by LongAndLow

Being on the lease means you are financially responsible for the rent, and that you are permitted to live in the apartment. It does not mean that you are forced to physically live there. It's not a prison. I don't see how it would be breaking the lease. People get divorced and separate all the time. A landlord cannot somehow force you to live together because you have a lease.

thank you for advice. Logical advice I am looking for. I was researching and saw that if a roomate on the lease moves out the how lease is broken not sure what state that was for though, But anyways we are good tenants so I am sure if you were a problem tenant the landlord could use that stipulation to get rid of you. I was just a little worried with the drama of a spouse moving out for second time if that could start to make us a "problem tenant" For instance how does landlord now said person would not move back in again, although we know this would be the last time.

[wickerpark2016]

Originally Posted by oddstray

I agree, it would never occur to me to inform a landlord of the state of my relationships.

But if you think that might cause problems, maybe offer to be solely on the lease for the next year and that both of you will still be living there for the foreseeable future.. Then it doesn't matter to the landlord whether your partner stays or goes. It just means you're responsible for the rent, which you intend to be anyway.

I think this would be a good idea but reasons we were thinking to both sign lease are small very small chance no one ever moves out. Second we talked about a second option for us is that if spouse does not find what they are looking for we are indifferent to who stays in the long run I can move out and spouse can stay. I have more flexability.

So it just seemed to us it would be easy to just both sign the lease and deal with it when one moves out.

I guess you can see we are not a hundred percent sure what will happen and it is bad timing that we need to resign the lease in actually about a week end of this month.