How do I get out of the lease?
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How do I get out of the lease?
My fiance and I moved in with a married couple. We signed a one year lease. I had to call the cops on them while my fiance was out of town due to the fact that the husband broke into my room and vandalized all of my belongings, and used physical force. The police said that they didn’t have enough evidence to press charges. But they told me that I was not to go into the apartment alone.
Asked on August 29, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Utah
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
While you should speak with an attorney about this situation--including about suing the couple for the damage to your goods and for assault on you--you should be able to terminate the lease without penalty. When a landlord leases property to you, he/she/they promise to give you possession of the rental space; if they willfully break into that space, they are violating your right to possession (which includes the right to control who enters it) and therefore breaching the lease. Also, they are violating the implied warranty of habitabilty, by exposing you to assault, which creates an unsafe condition.
Therefore, you should have lawful grounds to terminate the lease; but since you also likely have legal claims against this couple, it would be a good idea to speak about the situation in detail with an attorney before doing anything.
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