Can I be held liable for damages at a house whereI didn’t sign or receive a copy of any lease during the period the damage happened?
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Can I be held liable for damages at a house whereI didn’t sign or receive a copy of any lease during the period the damage happened?
I did sign a lease for the previous 12 month period however I was never presented with a new lease. My two room mates said they signed something but the landlord refused to give them a copy until I signed. I was never presented with something to sign or given a copy of anything.
Asked on January 29, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Maryland
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Although you did not receive the new lease or sign the new lease, you continued as a tenant and continued paying rent after the lease had expired, therefore as a tenant you are liable for the damage.
When a lease expires, a landlord can either evict the tenant or treat the tenant as a holdover tenant by accepting payment of rent. If the landlord accepts the payment of rent, the tenant whose lease had expired now has a month-to-month tenancy on the same terms as the original lease.
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