If I broke my lease and sent a letter of intent to vacate but landlord has made no effort to mitigate damages, what should I do?
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If I broke my lease and sent a letter of intent to vacate but landlord has made no effort to mitigate damages, what should I do?
I rented an apartment. I inherited a house,so I gave a letter of intent to vacate to my landlord with my rent check so I know they got it, they responded back a few days later telling me they will show the apartment immediately. A month went by, apartment was never shown. My apartment managers contacted me asking if I was moving. They said the landlord never informed them to show our apartment or even tell them I was moving and suggested I contact a lawyer. Should I still be paying my rent since they aren’t attempting to mitigate damages? Anything I should do?
Asked on August 7, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Wisconsin
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
You should speak with a landlord tenant attorney in your area. Some states do not require that the landlord mitigate damages at all and so you would still be liable under the law for the rent (as you are anyway) and so yes, I think that you should continue to pay the rent. If he is willing to let you out of the lease then that is rgeat news for you but he is not obligated to from the scenario you have written about here. Good luck.
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