Breaking a Lease but not my fault....

Davidian_ie

I moved into a house a month ago and signed a 1 year lease.A family member of the person sharing with me, came back to the house one night drunk and assaulted me out of the blue, the Gardai came and dealt with it at the time.Obviously the person I was sharing with has now left but I am stuck now as I can't afford the rent.The killer part is I paid down the full deposit on the house.Really don't know where to go with this and any advice would be appreciated.The neighbours reported what happened to the Landlord and he was very understanding of what happened but not sure if he will be so understanding about me leaving and breaking the lease.It's doubtful that he will offer the deposit back but I really need it to get another place.Under the circumstances I think he should show a bit of compassion as I am returning to college in September and really need to secure a place before then.Thoughts?

annacanna

get someone to rent the room that is now free?
did your friend sign the lease aswel?

sunflower27

Why don't you put the place up on daft.ie? If you get someone to take over the lease then you won't lose your deposit.

Sorry to hear what happened to you. It is very unfair that after what you went through you should be out of pocket as well.

Davidian_ie

I get access to my son a couple of days per week and some weekends,not too many people want to share under those circumstances.Just unfortunate that someone I thought was a friend the last time,turned out to be crazy when they had a few drinks and in this case a family member of theirs proved to be the same.Think my time of sharing has come to an end.

Davidian_ie

annacanna wrote: »

get someone to rent the room that is now free?
did your friend sign the lease aswel?

Yes they signed the lease but landlord asked them to leave after what happened.

The_Conductor

First off- under the 2004 Residential Tenancies Act- you can reassign the lease with the agreement of the landlord (a form of subletting of the property)- however its up to you to find a tenant willing to pay the rent in your lease, or in the case of them only being agreeable to pay a smaller amount- you are liable for the difference.

Its all well and good hoping the landlord will be compassionate towards you and your situation- and while I do sympathise- letting a property is a business decision first and foremost- and should be treated as such by both tenant and landlord.

The deposit is a guarantee against any damage over and above normal wear and tear- nothing else. It is not acceptable for a landlord to forfeit the deposit for any other reason, without the explicit agreement of the tenant. That said- you are legally liable to the landlord for the remainder of the lease- irrespective of the reasons that you are seeking to vacate the lease. Potentially you could be pursued by the landlord for rent for the entire year- and in any event you will be liable for rent even if you leave, until such time as the property is retenanted.

You have a very obvious case against your co-tenant for assault, and financial loss, resultant from their behaviour- however it would most likely be a civil matter, and could take years to resolve, so regardless of the moral side of this- they are probably off scott free.

Before making any assumptions whatsoever- you really need to sit down with the landlord, and be absolutely forthright and honest with him or her. Its entirely possible they may be nice about things and willing to let you out of the lease- however this is entirely at their discretion- and legally they have no obligation to do so.

Communication is key here- talk to them ASAP- don't leave it to the last minute- if you're going down the road of reassigning the lease etc- you need to get it in train sooner rather than later.

The_Conductor

Guys, just to clarify- the State Benefits mods moved this thread over to Accommodation and Property.

Cheers,

Shane

Davidian_ie

Thanks smccarrick for taking the time out to give me that detailed response,really appreciate your advice.Landlord is a very decent guy and was upset that I was subjected to an assault in the house.The last thing I want to do is upset or mess him around.I will follow your advice and out of respect for him, call him this week to call over and discuss the situation.

the groutch

do you have seperate agreements with the landlord, or one co-signed one?

Davidian_ie

the groutch wrote: »

do you have seperate agreements with the landlord, or one co-signed one?

A Co Signed One.

odds_on

Davidian_ie wrote: »

Yes they signed the lease but landlord asked them to leave after what happened.

As it was the landlord who asked the other tenant to leave, possibly it should be the landlord who should find another tenant.
However, he was probably fulfilling his obligations under "social behaviour" and therefore not liable.

keanooo

Ask him.