apartment renting/laws

[itissteeltime]

About 8 months ago i moved into a townhouse. The landlord kept saying he would get me a lease to sign, but that never happened and i never brought it up.

Now i plan on moving May first. About a week ago i told my landlord the plan, he mentioned id be responsible for mays rent, as expected. In dc, housing is very limited and i figured i would easily be able to sublease the month of may. Now, my roomates are giving me a.hard time saying they dont want to do a one month sublease. The lease states "sublet may not be assigned without prior written consent of the lessor." does this mean that if the landlord agrees, i can find a subletter regardless of what the current roomates want?

Also, is the 30 day notice rule pending the day you tell the landlord, or the first full month. For example if i told him april 15, am i responsible through may 15? Or, am i still responsible for all of may? Not that id consider doing this, but since.i never even signed a lease could i just wall away and not pay for may?

Thanks for helping me figure out how to not pay two months rent!

[slappybrown]

Without knowing the laws in any of DC/MD/VA, I'd say:

You were on a month to month, so you own him for the following month in full. So you owe all of May.

You don't owe your roommates anything. If landlord is ok with who you'd like to sublet to, then legally you are ok. You'd be a Richard in relation to your roomies, but your hell is your own.

[PensFanInDC]

If you never got a lease to sign how do you know it states "sublet may not be assigned without prior written consent of the lessor."

[itissteeltime]

Because about two weeks ago he sent one to all three of the tenants, while we were discussing something one of my roomates wanted repaired.

[slappybrown]

A scheme is afoot

[Letang Is The Truth]

methinks there be treachery afoot

[slappybrown]

Because about two weeks ago he sent one to all three of the tenants, while we were discussing something one of my roomates wanted repaired.

So you're not bound by it then. But it leaves a gap on what you can and can't do re sublet.

At the end of the day just pay May and move on. You got it like that.

[PensFanInDC]

If you didn't sign a lease you can leave whenever you want and not owe a dime for any time you didn't live there. Heck, you could leave at any time and not owe a dime for time you DID live there. That's the law in MD. It may be different in DC.

[Kraftster]

If you didn't sign a lease you can leave whenever you want and not owe a dime for any time you didn't live there. Heck, you could leave at any time and not owe a dime for time you DID live there. That's the law in MD. It may be different in DC.

I doubt that that is the law anywhere.

[columbia]

If you didn't sign a lease you can leave whenever you want and not owe a dime for any time you didn't live there. Heck, you could leave at any time and not owe a dime for time you DID live there. That's the law in MD. It may be different in DC.

I doubt that that is the law anywhere.

lol

[PensFanInDC]

If you didn't sign a lease you can leave whenever you want and not owe a dime for any time you didn't live there. Heck, you could leave at any time and not owe a dime for time you DID live there. That's the law in MD. It may be different in DC.

I doubt that that is the law anywhere.

A lack of a law is considered law yes? I didn't sign a lease for a home I rented 6 years ago. I wanted to leave but the landlord wanted to screw me over so I just left. I paid through the current month and I left before that month was over. He tried to take me to court but it was thrown out because no lease was signed.

[Kraftster]

I doubt that that is the law anywhere.

A lack of a law is considered law yes? I didn't sign a lease for a home I rented 6 years ago. I wanted to leave but the landlord wanted to screw me over so I just left. I paid through the current month and I left before that month was over. He tried to take me to court but it was thrown out because no lease was signed.

I was mainly referring to

you could leave at any time and not owe a dime for time you DID live there.

which it doesn't sound like is what you did.

[PensFanInDC]

I doubt that that is the law anywhere.

A lack of a law is considered law yes? I didn't sign a lease for a home I rented 6 years ago. I wanted to leave but the landlord wanted to screw me over so I just left. I paid through the current month and I left before that month was over. He tried to take me to court but it was thrown out because no lease was signed.

I was mainly referring to

you could leave at any time and not owe a dime for time you DID live there.

which it doesn't sound like is what you did.

Ohhhhhhhhh. That makes sense....

It isn't what I did, but I could have. If there is no lease there is no proof. Now, it's a jagoff thing to do but that isn't what was in question.

[Kraftster]

I doubt that that is the law anywhere.

A lack of a law is considered law yes? I didn't sign a lease for a home I rented 6 years ago. I wanted to leave but the landlord wanted to screw me over so I just left. I paid through the current month and I left before that month was over. He tried to take me to court but it was thrown out because no lease was signed.

I was mainly referring to

you could leave at any time and not owe a dime for time you DID live there.

which it doesn't sound like is what you did.

Ohhhhhhhhh. That makes sense....

It isn't what I did, but I could have. If there is no lease there is no proof. Now, it's a jagoff thing to do but that isn't what was in question.

I don't think that would fly. Generally speaking, the lack of a written contract is not going to allow one party to receive for free something that one would typically expect to pay for (be it a place to live or services or whatever).

If you come build a porch on my house but we never sign a contract, as long as I know you are building the porch and don't tell you to stop, I generally cannot let you finish the porch and then say, "Sorry, no money for you, we don't have a contract."

[Rylan]

Oral contracts are still contracts.

Pretty much the only thing I learned in the one law class I took.

[count2infinity]

giggity

[Mr. Colby]

I would recommend just biting the bullet and not burning bridges with your soon-to-be former roommates. You never know - some day you may cross paths again and wish you had kept a better rapport.

[itissteeltime]

Yeah, I don't intend on screwing anyone over. Too bad they can't just try to find someone they'd be ok living with for a month.