What are rights as landlord if a prospective tenant signed a lease, gave first month’s rent plus a security deposit and then 1 week before move wanted out?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What are rights as landlord if a prospective tenant signed a lease, gave first month’s rent plus a security deposit and then 1 week before move wanted out?
After she signed rental aggreement we turned down other prospective tenants.What are our rights as landlords? When she broke the lease we were without a new tenant for 1 month. She voided the checks so we were out 1 months rent.
Asked on April 5, 2012 under Real Estate Law, California
Answers:
Glenn M. Lyon, Esq. / MacGregor Lyon, LLC.
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
I agree with SJZ. His response applies in Georgia, assuming the property is located in Georgia.
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Once a tenant signs a lease, she is obligated to it. The landlord could sue her for all rent due for the entire length of the lease, or until the landlord re-rents the apartment, whichever comes first. In this case, since you re-let the premises in one month, you could potentially recover one month's rent from the tenant; since you do not have any security from her to draw upon, because she voided the checks, you'd have to sue her to recover the money, which may or may not be worth doing economically.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.