Lease Vs. Sublease
Leases are the agreements between landlords and tenants, in which the two parties decide how long the tenancy will continue, rules during the tenancy, and how it will end. Sublease occurs when the tenant then decides to contract away part of his lease (but not the entire remaining amount of it) to another tenant, the sublessee.
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Lease Agreements
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In a lease, the landlord and another party, a tenant, who wishes to use the landlord's property, make an agreement that will govern the tenant's usage of the property. The legal relationship between the parties is a "tenancy," and the lease is the legal contract that describes all of the rules of the relationship. Leases need not be written down to be legally effective.
Default Lease Law
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Although a lease is a binding contract, many states have laws that give tenants rights and landlords duties independent of the requirements of the lease. Most states demand that the landlord ensure that the tenant has the legal right to enter the property. In a residential lease, many states require the landlord to keep the property in a condition that qualifies as "habitable" under that state's law.
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Sublease
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In a sublease, the tenant goes on and rents to a third party, the sublessee. The defining characteristic of a sublease is that it only gives away a portion of the duration of the tenant's lease. The first tenant keeps a "reversion," an interest in the lease that will return to him when the sublease ends. The tenant also remains liable to the landlord for any failure to perform the lease.
Sublease Rights
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The sublease agreement exists independently of the lease. While the first tenant can enforce all of the rights granted to him by the lease against the landlord, the sublessee can't enforce any of the tenant's rights under the original lease. Likewise, the sublessee must only perform the duties described in the sublease; he need not fulfill the original tenant's demands under the lease. However, the parties may execute a contract, known as an assumption agreement, that merges rights and duties of the original lease into the sublease.
Assignment
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Whereas a sublease transfers only some of the tenants' lease to the sublessee, an assignment transfers the tenants' entire remaining interest to a new tenant, the assignee. In an assignment, as opposed to a sublease, the original tenant is released from all liability under the lease. The assignee takes over all of the tenant's duties under the original lease and can then enforce the lease against the landlord.
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References
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