I’m confused, what should I do ?!?

[Isiah Ferguson]

Hi to all ! I have a question. I received a long text message from a great tenant that occupied 1 of my units. I’m kinda confused on how I should proceed. I’m trying to see this from a humanitarian standpoint but I know this is business. We have a standard lease in place already & if you break it you lose your security deposit plus you’ll have to pay 1 months rent prior to move out. What do you guys think ?

”Good Afternoon !
I am contacting you to respectfully ask to break my lease and move from the resident by the end of the month. We had a tragic event happen over the past week and a half. My daughter who we just helped to move to Mooresville on March 8th fainted while on the phone with my oldest daughter who also lives in Mooresville. Once my oldest daughter got there, she found her sister unresponsive and called 911. She was in the home with her 2 toddlers. This happened last week on Tuesday. My daughter was diagnosed with Grade 4 brain cancer. She was taken by to Duke Medical and had surgery yesterday where the doctor said that they were going to remove the tumor and as much of the cancer as possible and then give Chemo and radiation once it’s determined if all or most of cancer was removed. As of today, she’s still not fully alert or exhibiting function or mobility. I was told by medical staff that she is going to need care once she is discharged. We are not sure when that will be. I am taking care of her children right now. I need to move into her residence with her to take care of her and her children. I know this is short notice and unexpected. I am currently waiting to speak with her doctors. I can call later this evening to discuss what I need to do. Thank you for your consideration and understanding.

Vicky”

[Greg M.]

I run mine as a business, but I'm also not a monster.

Assuming this is true (and you can ask for some proof), I take the hit and let the tenant out of the lease without penalty. It's a horrifying situation that she is dealing with. Even though I'm not responsible for any of this, I take the relatively small hit and file it under cost of doing business. The fact that she was a great tenant just reinforces that this is how I'd do it.