By Robert Griswold
Question: We are currently on a long-term lease with nine months remaining and need to move. Can we mutually agree with our landlord to a buyout of our lease? Does our landlord then have a monetary obligation to us if he rents to another tenant during the remaining term of our bought-out lease?Property manager Griswold replies:
A landlord and tenant are free to agree on the early termination of their lease. The landlord may pay the tenant to return possession to the landlord before the lease expiration. Ordinarily, if the landlord has paid something to the tenant for the early move-out, the landlord will be free to rent the unit to someone else with no obligation to the tenant. This usually does not come up as a problem since the tenant got what they wanted, which was payment to move early.
There can be some complication, however, in the rare occasion when the tenant just moves out with no agreement and the landlord immediately re-rents the unit for more than that tenant was paying. Under certain circumstances, that tenant may actually be entitled to these profits from the landlord.
Of course, it is not recommended to vacate a rental before the lease expires without an agreement to do so, or legal advice if an agreement cannot be reached.
. Questions of a Do It Yourself nature should be submitted to our "