Termination of Contract

[Clara Vale]

I need some advice...

I have a tenant who wants to terminate the contract after just a couple weeks living in the unit becuase her boyfriend became abusive and put her in the hospital... she has no job and can not pay rent... he is in jail and can not pay rent either...  

She asked me to give her the deposit back (which I don't mind doing) however... I told her to move everything from the unit out and leave it as I gave it to her and I will give her the deposit back... 

I went yesterday because I see no one is living in the unit... I knocked and no one opens the door... I looked in the window and saw all her boyfriends stuff in the unit... 

What should I do? I know she has until this Friday to move everything out but I have a feeling she will be leaving all her boyfriends stuff in there... 

I have a clause in the contract that says if they abandoned the unit I can throw away everything... but I want to make sure I do it the right way becuase I don' want this to come back biting me... 

I don't want problems... she has threatened me saying she will take me to court becuase my efficiecy is illegal and she wants her deposit back...  also in my contract I put early termination will result in a $900 fee and it was a 6 month contract... any advice will help

[Nicole A.]

Do not let her threats bully you. Is your unit truly illegal or is she just trying anything to get what she wants? You are absolutely correct to not give a dime back until the unit has been returned to you, which means empty unit and keys in your hand.

Has she stopped contacting you? What has she said the story is with the boyfriend's stuff? 

Just follow your local rental laws and you will be fine. Do not rush into decisions without knowing the laws. Do not make promises to her.

It sounds like you did not thoroughly check out this applicant before she/they moved in. Please be sure in the future that you are more picky about who you approve. Having a vacancy longer than you'd like is a better choice than what you're currently experiencing.

You also do not necessarily owe her the deposit back, especially for breaking the lease. It could be different depending on laws regarding tenants in abusive situations, so just look into that. But again, basically ignore her threats and only act on lawful options best for you and this bad tenant. Sound like it'll be good to be rid of them so soon.