Can We Leave Yet?
Q. My husband and I are good hard working people that happened to live in a slum. The neighbors are low life drug dealing psychopathic freaks. The managers are a young couple (21 and 23) and they thrive on intimidating people and having drunken screaming matches in front of my kid's bedroom window. We made the decision just last week to get the heck out of here, and have found a much nicer apartment without all the crap, and will be moving in on the first of November. We never signed a lease or month to month rental agreement for this year, nor have we exchanged any verbal agreements with the resident managers or the owners. We simply pay the rent. Are we obligated to give any amount of notice of our move?
A. Based on everything you're telling me, because you don't have a written lease, usually the law presumes that you have a month-to-month tenancy, which you can usually end on thirty-days' notice. (I say "usually" because every state is different, and Wisconsin may have slightly different rules about this. You might want to check this out, either in a local law library, or with an attorney from Legal Aid. Most states have them.) However, assuming Wisconsin is a "month-to-month" state, if you were planning on leaving on November 1, you would usually give notice on October 1.
Of course, I'm guessing your concern is what the managers' reaction will be, and what they might do. You can always give notice on November 1 for a December 1 end date, and then tell the landlord to apply your security deposit to the last month's rent. Sure, you're out your security deposit, but it may be that your piece of mind is worth that. (But note, just like with the month-to-month rules, Wisconsin may have rules about how you can use a security deposit when it comes to the last month's rent.)
Now, if you didn't post a security deposit, you can STILL move out on November 1, without giving any notice at all. Ordinarily, the most you would be liable for is the rent for the month of November (since you've only got a month-to-month lease). The landlord has a duty to mitigate (lessen) his damages, which means he can't just leave your apartment empty in the hope of collecting rent he claims you should have paid. He has to make an honest effort to rent the apartment out at the market rate. If the apartment is easily rentable, you'd probably only face one month's rental, at most (the month you didn't give him notice for [November]). (But, as above, you might want to raise all this questions with a local attorney, admitted to practice in Wisconsin [which I am not] to address these, and any related questions, you might have.)
One more thought occurred to me. If you have access to a video camera, do a walk-through of the apartment just before you leave, taping as you go. Make sure the date shows on the tape as you do. That way, you can document the condition of the apartment in case that ever becomes an issue. That technique has come in handy for friends and acquaintances over the years.
Best of luck to you, and I'm happy that you've got a nice opportunity in front of you!
Here’s the follow-up from the questioner, which is always nice to have:
Thanks so much for your speedy response - I imagine it is going to be an up-hill battle simply because there will be a total of 7 of 16 units open in this complex at the end of the month due to poor management. Three have been open over the course of the last 5 months, and they still haven't been able to fill them, and the only people that will be left after we leave are drug dealers and alcoholics. I have already kissed my security deposit goodbye simply because they will be desperate to keep as much $$ as they can. It's a mess. I will be sending them a letter, though it will be short notice, but I think I will also send a report from the police department for every call to this complex in the last 6 months. I doubt that will keep them from hauling me into small claims court, but with luck the judge will see my point. I will certainly contact an attorney as you suggested just to see what's up with Wisconsin law.
Thanks again.
A. Based on everything you're telling me, because you don't have a written lease, usually the law presumes that you have a month-to-month tenancy, which you can usually end on thirty-days' notice. (I say "usually" because every state is different, and Wisconsin may have slightly different rules about this. You might want to check this out, either in a local law library, or with an attorney from Legal Aid. Most states have them.) However, assuming Wisconsin is a "month-to-month" state, if you were planning on leaving on November 1, you would usually give notice on October 1.
Of course, I'm guessing your concern is what the managers' reaction will be, and what they might do. You can always give notice on November 1 for a December 1 end date, and then tell the landlord to apply your security deposit to the last month's rent. Sure, you're out your security deposit, but it may be that your piece of mind is worth that. (But note, just like with the month-to-month rules, Wisconsin may have rules about how you can use a security deposit when it comes to the last month's rent.)
Now, if you didn't post a security deposit, you can STILL move out on November 1, without giving any notice at all. Ordinarily, the most you would be liable for is the rent for the month of November (since you've only got a month-to-month lease). The landlord has a duty to mitigate (lessen) his damages, which means he can't just leave your apartment empty in the hope of collecting rent he claims you should have paid. He has to make an honest effort to rent the apartment out at the market rate. If the apartment is easily rentable, you'd probably only face one month's rental, at most (the month you didn't give him notice for [November]). (But, as above, you might want to raise all this questions with a local attorney, admitted to practice in Wisconsin [which I am not] to address these, and any related questions, you might have.)
One more thought occurred to me. If you have access to a video camera, do a walk-through of the apartment just before you leave, taping as you go. Make sure the date shows on the tape as you do. That way, you can document the condition of the apartment in case that ever becomes an issue. That technique has come in handy for friends and acquaintances over the years.
Best of luck to you, and I'm happy that you've got a nice opportunity in front of you!
Here’s the follow-up from the questioner, which is always nice to have:
Thanks so much for your speedy response - I imagine it is going to be an up-hill battle simply because there will be a total of 7 of 16 units open in this complex at the end of the month due to poor management. Three have been open over the course of the last 5 months, and they still haven't been able to fill them, and the only people that will be left after we leave are drug dealers and alcoholics. I have already kissed my security deposit goodbye simply because they will be desperate to keep as much $$ as they can. It's a mess. I will be sending them a letter, though it will be short notice, but I think I will also send a report from the police department for every call to this complex in the last 6 months. I doubt that will keep them from hauling me into small claims court, but with luck the judge will see my point. I will certainly contact an attorney as you suggested just to see what's up with Wisconsin law.
Thanks again.
posted by David Kendall at
12:36 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home