Proper Care to Vacate a Lease

Your lease should indicate the fees you can expect when leaving a property.

Rental properties offer a great deal of flexibility, as tenants aren't tied to any particular property for a long time. Even so, with this flexibility comes the need to vacate the rental property properly when the lease is up or the unit no longer suits your needs. Pay attention to your lease and the laws for your state when vacating; ideally, vacating the lease should be done in writing.

Proper Notice

Perhaps the most important aspect of ending a lease is proper notice. In general, you give notice to your landlord or property manager, but in certain instances, the landlord or property manager is within his purview to send a notice to you if he doesn't want to keep renting the property. How much notice you have to give depends on the laws for your state, as well as the exact terms in your lease agreement, but typically you must give 30 or 60 days' notice.

What the Notice Does

When you give your property manager or landlord notice, you tell her you intend to end your tenancy, essentially giving her permission to show and rent the unit to someone else. Once your landlord or property manager has a signed notice to vacate, she's under no legal obligation to let you rescind the notice, although she might do this if she hasn't found someone who wants the unit. For this reason, it's imperative that you don't give notice until you're absolutely certain you're leaving.

Return to Prerental Condition

The majority of leases are drawn up so that you're obligated to return the rented unit back to the way it was before you moved in. Typically, the landlord or property manager charges you fees, taking them out of your security deposit, if you've damaged or changed the property and don't fix it. Your landlord or property manager should walk through the rental unit with you when you move out so you know what problems he's finding with the unit. If you've been very careful, you should get your whole deposit back, but landlords and property managers are often skilled at finding little problems, such as replacing drip pans on stoves. Ask your landlord or property manager for a list of repair or replacement fees: That way, you can determine whether making the repair or replacement yourself is cheaper than letting your security deposit handle the bill.

Early Termination

In certain cases, life circumstances such as changing jobs or divorce may necessitate moving out of your rental unit prior to the end of your lease. You have three main options if you need to do this. The first is to talk with your landlord or property manager and explain the situation, asking directly if she'll let you out of the agreement. Depending on your circumstances and how much more time is left on the lease, your landlord may be nice enough to do this, but it isn't required, nor is it standard practice. The second option is to utilize a buyout clause, if provided, in the lease. A buyout means you pay extra money to leave early; buyouts don't hurt your credit or rental history the way abandoning the property would. The last and least desirable option is to look for evidence the property manager has violated the lease in some way so that it's void, or to use laws such as those for domestic abuse that require landlords to release you from tenancy even if your lease isn't finished. You'll likely need an attorney with this option.

Fees

The majority of leases are drawn up so the billing cycle starts on the first of the month. However, in certain instances, it's necessary to leave in the middle of the month. When you give notice, clarify in writing whether your landlord will prorate your rent for the month you leave. This usually is already in the lease but not always. Get a breakdown of all fees the landlord is charging you, and get a receipt when you pay.

References

• Lawyers.com; Terminating or Ending a Residential Lease; 2011