If I’ve lived in this house for 4 months with no lease and my landlord came and took all of the appliances today, what can I do?

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If I’ve lived in this house for 4 months with no lease and my landlord came and took all of the appliances today, what can I do?

Asked on December 17, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Florida

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 11 years ago | Contributor

You can sue the landlord for compensation, such as the cost of lost food, the cost to order food in or do laundry outside, etc. When there is no written lease, there is still (always) an oral or verbal lease; an oral lease creates a month-to-month tenancy; a month-to-month tenacy means that while either party can terminate the tenancy on a month's notice, or the landlord may change its terms on a month's notice, there *must* be a month's notice. Therefore, you have to have appliances for at least one month after the landlord tells you he wants to remove them; otherwise, he has breached the oral lease, under which you were renting a unit that had appliances. He may also have breached the "implied warranty of habitability," if he effectively rendered the home unfit for residence.

Alternatively, you could treat the tenancy as terminated by the landlord's breach and move out; in that case, you may be able to sue for moving costs.


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