off the wall question

[wysiwyg]

Soc,

IN here.  

This is a rental / lease question.  Our apt complex is being torn down and reconstructed, everyone has to leave, but the management or owners will NOT give anyone a time line to be able to plan, no one at the office is saying anything to the residents.  The first building r(of 14)received a letter to vacate in 60 days back in Sept.  I have not received a letter as of yet.  Family and I signed a new 1 year lease as we were told we would be asked to leave around March 06 and we did not want to move in winter.  Current lease is up 10/31, new lease is effective 11/1, but was signed in Sept for 11/1/05 to 10/31/06.

The complex is now saying that they are not tearing down our buidling for a long time, perhaps as long as 2 years.  Family and I are still happy to move in spring/summer 06 but would like to be able to leave with no repercussions.  The complex presale, would add an addendum to our lease allowing us no penalty to leave provided we gave atleast 30 days notice.  THhs was done in 03 for us, with no expiration date, however I believe that intent was to attach to that years lease.  Complex under new ownership states they are not doing this.

Is there any legal way I can break my lease next spring/summer or anything I can do before my new lease goes into effect?  I really do not want to listen or see construction 100 feet from my patio and I do not want a short term lease as that costs me an additional 50-100 a month.  We are long time residents (11 years) with no problems or late payments.

Thanks in advance.

[socrateaser]

>Soc,
>
>IN here.  
>
>This is a rental / lease question.  Our apt complex is being
>torn down and reconstructed, everyone has to leave, but the
>management or owners will NOT give anyone a time line to be
>able to plan, no one at the office is saying anything to the
>residents.  The first building r(of 14)received a letter to
>vacate in 60 days back in Sept.  I have not received a letter
>as of yet.  Family and I signed a new 1 year lease as we were
>told we would be asked to leave around March 06 and we did not
>want to move in winter.  Current lease is up 10/31, new lease
>is effective 11/1, but was signed in Sept for 11/1/05 to
>10/31/06.
>
>The complex is now saying that they are not tearing down our
>buidling for a long time, perhaps as long as 2 years.  Family
>and I are still happy to move in spring/summer 06 but would
>like to be able to leave with no repercussions.  The complex
>presale, would add an addendum to our lease allowing us no
>penalty to leave provided we gave atleast 30 days notice.
>THhs was done in 03 for us, with no expiration date, however I
>believe that intent was to attach to that years lease.
>Complex under new ownership states they are not doing this.
>
>Is there any legal way I can break my lease next spring/summer
>or anything I can do before my new lease goes into effect?  I
>really do not want to listen or see construction 100 feet from
>my patio and I do not want a short term lease as that costs me
>an additional 50-100 a month.  We are long time residents (11
>years) with no problems or late payments.
>
>Thanks in advance.

Did you know that the construction would begin at the time you signed the new lease? If so, you're pretty much screwed. If not, then you can probably rescind the new lease, and perhaps they will negotiate a new lease or you may have to move.

You can always break a lease, but you are responsible for the rent until the landlord finds a new tenant, and the landlord must make good faith efforts to find one. However, if there's major construction going on right next to your residence, that could make it commercially impractical to find a new tenant, AT THE SAME RENT that you were paying. This is important, because you can argue that the landlord has made the apartment less valuable, so you should be discharged from having to pay the difference between what the landlord can actually get and what the landlord wants for the rent.

It's a tough call, frankly. If I were you I'd seriously consder moving now, and trying to get the landlord to let you out of the new lease, because it will be easier for him to rent before the new construction begins, and easier for you to escape because you will not have actually injured the landlord by inhabiting the premises during the new lease term.

In short, you changed your mind and you want to rescind now. The only question is whether you can make it the landlord's fault or not, and that depends on when you knew that the new construction would begin.

[wysiwyg]

As far as knowing the ONLY thing that we have heard are rumours and a letter stating the place was sold.  There is no other knowledge of anything, other than the one building got a letter to vacate within 60 days.   There is no web site, no phone number, no notices to any of the other 175 tennants, and the office is quite silent.  I would move now but there is no other apartment availalbe in our town to accomodate our family - which is why I wanted to put my name on a waiting list for one of the other complexes, and when they notify me I can give proper notice to the current place, which would effectively be 45-60 days noticce.  I am trying to get a number of the corporate office so I can call to ask them what their timeline is, and explain my concerns but no one is willing to give that info out and the only letter we got contained to office number, it is a round robin situation.

Thanks Soc, I do not want o burn my bridges, I just want a place ot live in peace!  

[socrateaser]

You must decide where you are willing to draw the line. You can't have your cake and eat it too. If you want an excuse to break the lease, then you can't procrastinate about breaking it.

If you have no notice of the construction, you could write your management now, and tell them that the lease that you have signed is predicated on their assertion that no major construction activity that would reasonably modify the current quality of life in your apartment, whether due to noise or any other construction activity, will take place during your tenancy, and that in the event that such activity does take place, that such activity shall as immediately terminate the lease at your option, and that if they do not agree, that they should contact you immediately and you will give notice that you are quitting the premises, and that if you do not receive a response from them within 5 days, that they impliedly agree with these additional terms and conditions.

Send it certified mail.

By doing this you are putting the ball in their court. If you don't hear from them, then you have evidence that you gave them notice and that they failed to respond and thereby tacitly agreed to your terms.

But, you must be prepared to move if they call your hand.

[wysiwyg]

Interesting timeline for you:

9/13/05 - Letter tacked to our door that the complex was sold
9/14/05 - statement on web site states thanking the residents for their patience while discussions  of a potential sale circulated, and that the complex was not sold and currently no plans existed regarding any potential sale. (I have screen shot dated 9/14/05)

Lease states "NOTICE OF DEFECTS- Breach of lease by landlord; Tennant will give Landlord prompt written notice of any defects or problems with the structure, equipment or fixtures of said premises and other common areas such as hallways, and in other property of the Landlord's complex.  

Just found that all interesting for "future" reference.

[socrateaser]

>Interesting timeline for you:
>
>9/13/05 - Letter tacked to our door that the complex was sold
>9/14/05 - statement on web site states thanking the residents
>for their patience while discussions  of a potential sale
>circulated, and that the complex was not sold and currently no
>plans existed regarding any potential sale. (I have screen
>shot dated 9/14/05)
>
>Lease states "NOTICE OF DEFECTS- Breach of lease by landlord;
>Tennant will give Landlord prompt written notice of any
>defects or problems with the structure, equipment or fixtures
>of said premises and other common areas such as hallways, and
>in other property of the Landlord's complex.  
>
>Just found that all interesting for "future" reference.

This stuff is not useful. First, a note tacked to your door is the traditional legal notice to a tenant, especially if that's what's provided for in your existing lease. The website is not traditionally legal notice, and probably wouldn't be recognized by a court even if it were expressly provided for in your lease.

The notice of defects is also not really relevant, because construction of improvements are not defects, unless the construction actually impairs your use of the common areas of the complex.

Your case is determined by (1) whether you signed your lease before or after you received notice that construction would take place on the property in a manner that might reasonably be interpreted to reduce the market value of your tenancy, by unreasonably altering your expections under the lease. If you didn't receive notice, then you can argue contract misrepresentation as to the habitability of your premises.

Or, if your premises are less habitable because of the construction, such that a court would find it reasonable that you would vacate the premises early, then that is a constructive eviction and you will not be held liable for moving out early. Otherwise, you probably will be held liable.