Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Illinois
Do I have to pay to break a lease when the lease doesn't say anything about it?
I'm getting overcharged for my apartment (according to other tenants I've talked to) and my car was recently damaged by criminals breaking into the car next to mine in the lot and beating up its occupants. I want to break the lease and move to a safer, cheaper apartment.
Upon reading the language of the lease, I have found nothing that says I have to pay the two months' rent that the landlords claim is the fee. In fact, there is no language in the lease whatsoever about their policy regarding lease breakage. The only language approaching the issue states that I may not sublet, and that if I vacate the apartment without notice they can rent it out again. Am I bound to whatever policy the landlord decides to make up, no matter if I signed a document to that effect or not?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Do I have to pay to break a lease when the lease doesn't say anything about
Of course there is not language, because that would assume that a tenant has the right to cancel a lease before the term is up. A tenant has no such right. So, the landlord can establish any policy it chooses if you want to break the lease before the end of the term. You should also be aware that the landlord does not have to have a policy about lease termination. It can simply say you pay until the term is up. However, often in these circumstance you may be able to negotiate a lesser penalty particularly if there are circumstances of the landlord not living up to it obligations. Pro se court may be a place to go to get some relief if the landlord is not cooperative.
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