I'm dealing with bitchy landlord at the moment. I'm not sure what to do. I've been renting the same condo for over a couple of years and my lease came up for renewal on the 7th. At that time I was assigned a couple of more subject areas at work, so I was working till 7pm or later. Takes me an hour to get home, so yeah. My landlord asked me to stop by her place last week to renew the lease. I said I would, but work got in the way. I called her during the week to explain me working late, not being home till 8pm or later, and she said it was fine, just contact her when I can come by. Friday when I got home, my fiancee surprised me with a weekend out of town. Completely forgot about the lease. We left, didnt get back till Sunday night. I turn on my phone Sunday night and there is an angry message from my landlord telling me that I have to move out by the end of the month because I am trying to "hold over" my lease which is illegal and she won't accept payment without a new lease. I've tried contacting her since Sunday night (after hours) telling her to come by my job or I got hers, or meet me at the condo late or I can come by late to her house, or even fax it, if she allows it, to sign the papers. I've called from my office multiple times, since my cell doesnt get much signal in the building, I've text her after work and attempted to call her. No answer. She won't respond. I've never been late with a payment, the last two times she had NO issue with me signing the lease. I'm only 7 days over. Why is she suddenly being so mean? I'm a stable tenant. We take care of the condo. We pay on time. The only time she has to pay for something to get fixed was when the furnace sensor went out. I don't know what to do. I'm a week late signing the lease and she is telling me to move out and won't even answer my calls or texts. Were buying a house soon, but we havent found one yet...so we can't move out!
In nearly every state, the county courthouse offers a free tenant advisory center, usually staffed by law students. I'd look that up and talk to them for a definitive answer. It's usually free. First off, your landlord can't throw you out with no notice, particularly if there's intent on your part to renew the lease. The worst she can do is to file a legal action called an "unlawful detainer" and that takes a month or two to get heard by the court. And if she were to do that, she'd get laughed out of the courtroom if you made it clear that you'd been trying to renew the lease and could show proof of your efforts. What I'd suggest is 1. Read your lease. See what it says about holdover. Many residential leases automatically convert to month-to- month tenancy. Some do say there's no month-to-month, and no holdover, but even in those cases, it's clear both of you wanted to renew, and the court usually looks at the intent of the parties as well as the letter of the contract. 2. Keep any emails, voicemails, contacts you have with her indicating that she was trying to contact you to renew the lease. (and you her.) 3. Send her a letter via email and certified mail, return receipt saying that you want to renew the lease, and pay the next month's rent, and that you've been trying to do so, and are willing to meet with her after hours, or willing to get the lease emailed or mailed to you, and you'll sign and return it. Also, keep in mind that if you're buying a house, you won't be able to just break the lease on the place you're in, unless the terms of the lease specifically stipulate that. You'll be on the hook for the rent for the remainder of the term of the lease. Depending on the specifics of the lease and state law, you may be able to find a suitable replacement tenant, pay a fee (usually a couple months' rent) to terminate the lease, or sublease to someone (which means you're still responsible if they don't pay, and for any damages they cause.) So think about that as well before signing a new lease.
The contract we had last year stipulated that I could pay a fee to break the lease, as I had to travel for work often and there was no guarantee I wouldnt have to move for a client. I would assume the lease would say the same thing again. I've tried calling multiple times, texting and everything and still nothing. I get no reception on my cell in my office at work, so I called from my office many times and left a message with my number to call me there between 9 and 5 and on my cell otherwise. Text messages go unanswered as do my voice mails. I dunno how to get a copy of the times I called her at work.... so...yeah I dunno.
