Since breaking a lease can be a serious legal matter, we recommend you contact a lawyer or local tenant advocacy organization. Most cities have non-profits that specialize in this field and while lawyers are expensive, they can save you money in the long run with their expertise.

1) Negotiate with your landlord. If you two are on good terms, you may be able to get out of your lease if you give up your security deposit. Keep in mind the costs that will be incurred to the landlord once you leave - he will have to begin the process of finding a new tenant, either by advertising and searching themselves or using a broker (all of which takes a chunk of of their pockets). It can be even worse if the lease is broken off-season, which leads to a scarcity of apartment seekers. If he doesn’t find someone, then he’ll be sitting on lost revenue.

2) Sublet or assign your lease to another tenant. Check if your landlord will allow this. Assigning a lease basically means that you will find someone to take over your lease permanently. A sublet, on the other hand, is only temporary. Give your landlord at least 30 days notice of your intention to move out (some require 60 days notice) and start looking for prospective tenants. Unless your landlord’s requirements and preferences have changed since you moved in, you should have a good idea of what to look for in prospective tenants. To speed up the process make sure your prospective tenants have all the necessary documents ready.

3) Unlivable conditions. If your apartment becomes damaged or unsafe to the point where it is uninhabitable, you may break your lease without a penalty. Unfortunately, if your attempt at cooking something besides pasta has led to a horrible fire in your apartment, this would probably be considered your fault and you would be responsible. On the other hand, if a crime or natural disaster damaged your apartment, you should document all the damage and notify your landlord. It is your landlord’s responsibility to provide safe living conditions and local tenant’s rights organizations can help you get out of your lease.

4) Job transfer. Many people need to move because of a job transfer to a new city. If this is the case, your employer may offer relocation assistance that can help subsidize any penalties related to breaking a lease. Again, just coordinate with your landlord ahead of time.

5) Senior Citizens, Domestic Violence, Military Duty. Based on various state and local laws, you are legally allowed to break a lease (in NYC):
If you are 62 or older and require assisted living.
If you have been a victim of domestic violence and are at risk of physical harm by staying at your place.
If you are in the military and have been called into active duty.

You can learn more about your local laws here.

Remember - you will likely need a reference from your landlord in the future, so we recommend that if you have to break a lease, you do it in the most responsible manner possible. Don’t stop paying rent. This will really hurt your credit rating and your landlord can take legal action against you. To prevent being stuck with an undesirable lease, make sure you thoroughly check your apartment and all lease provisions before signing.

If you have any interesting stories regarding leases, or any other tips you’d like to offer, please comment below. 

Many times as we go on an apartment hunt, we are in such a mad rush dealing with brokers and making appointments, that we end up being unprepared when actually visiting and inquiring about the apartment. We forget to ask some important questions regarding the neighborhood, terms and conditions, and logistics of an apartment. Outside of asking the right questions, we also forget to make systematic observations - something that could come back to bite us once the lease is signed. Aside from making obvious observations (like making sure there’s a roof), here are 10 things (sort of a checklist) you should proactively check and look for in an apartment visit.

Building sanitation situation - Apart from the trash pickup on the street - look for the building trash collection areas - where are they located? Near the stairwell? Tucked away somewhere in the basement? Is there a bad smell in the foyer/hallways? By doing this you can get an idea of the quality of the sanitation in the building. No matter how clean the apartment can be, a dirty building is a dirty building, and it can lead to pest infestations, and general unpleasantness.

Pests/infestations in the building- Look for any notices in the building regarding exterminations. See if the apartment has a strong pesticide smell - this is an indication that they could have had a pest problem before. Does building have shared space with restaurants or bars below it? This situation always attracts mice and roaches. Ask the landlord if they offer regular extermination services as well.

Apartment noise levels - Visiting an area at different times of the day and week will give you a better idea of its true noise levels. Things such as traffic, local businesses, nearby construction sites, the soundproof-a-bility of the windows and the type of neighborhood patrons are all factors that you should observe and consider when visiting an apartment. The presence of bars, for example, can indicate high foot traffic, and more importantly the probability of late night commotion. The last think your want to be hearing is post graduate frat boys getting into bar brawls at 3 am.

Working appliances and equipment - Check the refrigerator, gas stoves, faucets, windows, door locks, electrical outlets, washer/dryers, air conditioners and anything else that comes with the apartment. Ensure everything is in functional order and inspect them for existing damage before you leave that apartment. In the bathroom and kitchen if you notice build up of rust and sediment next to pipes, it could indicate that leaks exist somewhere along those water lines. The broker/landlord shouldn’t lie, but test as much of it as you can yourself. Even if something is broken, management can work with you to make these quick fixes before you move in. No need to blame them - It just needs to be brought to their attention!

Opinion of apartment building residents - If you see any residents in the hallways, briefly stop them and ask them what they think of the building and the management. Ask them if they have had any issues recently. Notice their tone for any frustration, hesitation or even sarcasm - such as ‘Oh yea, this place is TO DIE FOR!’ On the other hand, some residents can give genuinely good responses about a place. Families and couples are always a good indicator of a livable and desirable building. Plus they’re also great folks to hold packages for you, while you’re out!

Quality of apartment walls - Many NY apartments have ‘fake’ walls built in to inflate the room count. Studios are often turned into 1 bedrooms; 2 bedrooms into 3 etc.. What’s the quality of that wall that was put into place? Usually it is drywall, but you should make sure its thick and strong enough to withstand some physical force and seal out noise. Also, check out the walls that separate apartment units. Randomly knock on different areas - you’re looking for a dull thud of a knock rather than a hollow echo. The last think you’d want is loud neighbors keeping you up at night.

Cell phone coverage in apartment - This one can’t be stressed enough! Walk around the apartment (every room) and check your cell phone signal. Make sure you have enough bars to send and receive calls. Many people overlook this tiny detail and get screwed for a year to come. The last thing you want to do is live in a state of urgency, having to constantly run out into the hallway or stick your arm out the window.

Closet space - This might seem like an obvious one, but surprisingly gets overlooked all too often. Rule of thumb is that each resident should have a dedicated space for their clothes and other belongings. These days closets come in all shapes and sizes, with/without doors, shelves etc.. My apartment, for example, only offered one shared closet space in the living room - but it was big enough for 3 people to share (might I add, that we’re also all guys). Additionally, there should be one more closet near the entrance for all miscellaneous stuff like household cleaning supplies, boxes etc..

Supply of electrical sockets - This is another subtle one that gets overlooked. Check each room for an adequate supply of outlets. Ideally, each bedroom will have 2-3 outlet banks consisting of a pair of 3-prong (contacts) sockets. 3-prong sockets are important because the power plugs for most heavy electrical equipment such as computers, ACs etc., require the third grounding line. Placement of the outlets is also very important. Ideally, they should be evenly spaced throughout the room and installed about a foot above the floor, where it is easy to reach and hidden from eye level. Do you really want your new date seeing a tangled up mess of wires leading to your super-cooled custom desktop gaming station? We don’t either.

Room and door frame measurements - Photos, video or plain memory can’t accurately depict  the size of a room. When trying to decide how much and what kind of furniture to bring during the moving process, real measurements are the way to go. Before viewing the apartment - ask the broker if he has a laser measurement tool (nerd out!) that he/she can bring along. Many brokers carry this around to make life easier for apartment hunters. This handheld tool gives accurate wall to wall measurements with a single point and click. If you can’t get your hands on one - a simple 25’ tape measure works well too. It’s useful to have someone else with you if you use this method i.e. one person holds one end, and the other pulls the tape. Also, taking door frame measurements can prove quite useful when trying to determine the kind of furniture that will actually make it into your room, let alone your apartment.

Did you miss any of these points in your last apartment search? Anything else that came up to bite you back in a not so nice way? Share your stories and we’ll look into writing a future article with these suggestions. And, remember, there’s no substitute for being organized!