How to Break a Lease With Your Roommates Without Hurting Your Credit

Before breaking a lease, consider finding a replacement tenant.

Having roommates helps to cut living expenses. When your roommates don't pay rent, damage the property or violate the rental agreement, however, you may want to break the lease. If you act in haste and walk out without properly terminating your lease or discussing the situation with your roommates, they may be inclined to report your lack of payments to a credit bureau or sue you for damages, which may affect your credit rating. If you handle the situation amicably and in favor of all parties, you might avoid hurting your credit.

Things You'll Need

• Lease agreement

Instructions

1. Examine your legal rights of how to terminate the lease prior to the end of the lease term. Review the lease terms between you and your roommates. Understand how long you initially agreed to stay and your penalties for late payments. Review whether you're entitled to get back your security deposit if you break your lease. Confirm who signed the lease and who holds responsibility to the landlord.

2. Document the details of how you believe your roommates have broken the lease agreement. Consider late payments on rent, unauthorized pets, inviting guests for extended stays or other problems you're facing. Provide the letter to your roommates.

3. Negotiate terms to allow you to break the lease with your roommates. Offer your roommates the option to rectify the situation by a certain date or release you from the lease.

4. Offer to pay your share of the rent and utilities until either you or your roommates find a replacement if you're moving out through no fault of your roommates but for your own personal reasons, and if no terms are stipulated in a written agreement. Include a condition that, if you find a roommate who qualifies to move in based on the terms stipulated in the lease, you're released from the lease whether or not they accept the roommate.

5. Arrive at an amicable agreement in favor of all parties.

Tips & Warnings

• Consider asking your roommates to pay for damages they'e caused to the rental unit, as well as overdue rent by a date that all parties agree to, instead of breaking the lease.

• If you walk away from your lease, your roommates could sue you in small claims court for unpaid rent, unpaid utilities and advertising costs to find a replacement. If your roommates win, your wages or bank accounts may be garnished to collect what the court awards.

References

• Nolo: Renting a House or Apartment With Roommates
• TenantNet: Roommate Advice
• The University of Arizona: Everything You Need to Know About Ending Your Lease
• Nolo: When a Roommate Moves Out

Resources

• College Unzipped: An All-Access Backstage Pass Into College Life; Kaplan, Inc.