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What if you leave before the lease ends?

  • 26-04-2009 10:12am
    #1
    TripleAce
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,454 ✭✭✭


    We are about to sign a 12-months lease. The contract clearly states "To give one months notice in writing to the landlord of any intentions to terminate the tenancy agreement at the end of the fixed term" and " The Tenant is responsible for the payment of the agreed rent for the entire agreed term", therefore I wonder if we decide to leave after let's say 8 months, are we liable to pay the remaining 4 months of the lease, or a standard 1-Month notice will be enough?

    Thank you ;)


Comments

  • #2
    SoupyNorman
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,257 ✭✭✭SoupyNorman


    TripleAce wrote: »
    We are about to sign a 12-months lease. The contract clearly states "To give one months notice in writing to the landlord of any intentions to terminate the tenancy agreement at the end of the fixed term", therefore I wonder if we decide to leave after let's say 8 months, are we liable to pay the remaining 4 months of the lease, or a standard 1-Month notice will be enough?

    Thank you ;)

    You can leave the property with 30days notice, the lease is a separate legal entity whereby you'll still be liable for the rent owed. (I'm open to correction)


    Why dont you try bargain for a 6month lease, renters are gaining more and more purchase by the day!


  • #3
    Xiney
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,085 ✭✭✭Xiney


    Yup, you can leave but you'll still be liable to pay the rest of the rent owed.


  • #4
    The_Conductor
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 32,286 Mod ✭✭✭✭The_Conductor


    TripleAce wrote: »
    We are about to sign a 12-months lease. The contract clearly states "To give one months notice in writing to the landlord of any intentions to terminate the tenancy agreement at the end of the fixed term" and " The Tenant is responsible for the payment of the agreed rent for the entire agreed term", therefore I wonder if we decide to leave after let's say 8 months, are we liable to pay the remaining 4 months of the lease, or a standard 1-Month notice will be enough?

    Thank you ;)

    Standard. The actual term of notification is specified in the 2006 Residential Tenancies Act. The longer you stay- the longer you have to give in notice. 1 months notice is pretty standard though.

    If you leave after 8 months- or sublet (with the landlords permission) you are responsible for the agreed rent for the remainder of the term- so if after 8 months you are only able to get (for arguments sake 800) and the lease you signed specified EUR1000 a month- you would have to make up the difference.

    Longer term leases tend to have a much lower rent associated with them than short term leases. Residential landlords are however far quicker to bring leaseholders to court these days than they would have been in the past. These court cases are civil cases for breach of lease- they are not covered by PRTB proceedings.

    Do *not* sign a 12 month lease if you feel you will not be staying for full term.

    Note: at the end of the lease- notice to vacate the property still has to be served by either party.


  • #5
    TripleAce
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,454 ✭✭✭TripleAce


    Thank you all for your answers....this is a bit of a turn off! We are not really planning to leave the apartment before 12 months, but you never know what can happen! :(

    Is 12-months standard? Or is it usually 6-months? My last two lease in Limerick were both 6-months.

    Also I left the deposit for the apartment yesterday (cheque not cashed yet), if I step away from the deal now, am I entitled to get my deposit back (in case they cash it first thing on Monday morning)?


  • #6
    Xiney
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,085 ✭✭✭Xiney


    If you haven't signed anything you can still ask that your deposit be returned.

    Once they have your signature on a contract accepting its terms, however, you're locked in.


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  • #7
    Pete4779
    Closed Accounts Posts: 622 ✭✭✭Pete4779


    TripleAce wrote: »
    We are about to sign a 12-months lease.......are we liable to pay the remaining 4 months of the lease, or a standard 1-Month notice will be enough?

    I've bolded the important bit.

    do you know what the lease is?

    Have you asked what the implications are?

    Request to insert a break clause in the lease at a set time, for example: the option to break it at 6 months in. That will give you an out, if it's acceptable to the landlord.


  • #8
    catussa
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 31 ✭catussa


    Hi

    I have breached two leases so far...before I breached the first one, I asked Citizen's Information what to do and they told me:

    even if you breach the lease, as long as you give the correct notice (until 6 months, it is 28 days), you are entitled to get your deposit back, if you do not get it back, you can proceed legally against the landlord (PRTB will assist and cover legal fees). The landlord can proceed against you legally, but normally they do not bother, because legal fees would have to be covered by them and exceed the remainder of the lease, which they would eventually get when proceeding in court. So normally you are on the safe side if you give the correct notice.


  • #9
    The_Conductor
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 32,286 Mod ✭✭✭✭The_Conductor


    catussa wrote: »
    Hi

    I have breached two leases so far...before I breached the first one, I asked Citizen's Information what to do and they told me:

    even if you breach the lease, as long as you give the correct notice (until 6 months, it is 28 days), you are entitled to get your deposit back, if you do not get it back, you can proceed legally against the landlord (PRTB will assist and cover legal fees). The landlord can proceed against you legally, but normally they do not bother, because legal fees would have to be covered by them and exceed the remainder of the lease, which they would eventually get when proceeding in court. So normally you are on the safe side if you give the correct notice.

    This used to be the case.
    Residential Landlords are not nearly as likely to allow tenants break leases these days, as they were up to last year. Its difficult enough to get tenants in the first instance, and when tenants are given a longer lease, the norm is for a landlord to build a sizeable deduction into the rent over and above what they would for a shorter lease. Accordingly- its not just the remainder of the lease that they are out of pocket over- it can be a lot more. There are several solicitor's practises with very lucrative growing businesses in this area.

    FYI- if a case is found in favour of the landlord- costs are awarded to the landlord- so a tenant can have a lot more to loose than the original rent would ever have been.......

    Up to very recently- landlords didn't give a damn if someone broke their lease- as they could let it virtually the following day for a considerable amount more than the original tenant was paying. Those days are long gone though.........


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