A rental agreement, or lease, is a legally enforceable contract between a landlord and tenant. The agreement specifies the terms for the tenant’s occupancy of rental property. A rental agreement can last for varying amounts of time, from month-to-month to a year and beyond. The rental agreement usually states the period of time for which it is to have effect, or the term of the lease.
A renter may want to leave the apartment before the end of the lease term. This is called “breaking a lease.” Alabama has rules regarding if and when a lease can be broken and who has what legal responsibilities in the event that a lease is broken.
What Are Legal Justifications for Breaking a Lease?
In Alabama, a tenant who wants to vacate property before the end of their lease term may owe the landlord the rent for the entire remaining term of the lease. There are, however, a limited number of exceptions to this rule regarding when a tenant can end their tenancy before the lease ends without owing rent for the remaining term of the lease:
- The landlord violates the tenant’s privacy: Under Alabama law, a landlord must give their tenant at least two days’ notice to enter rental property. If a person’s landlord repeatedly violates their rights to privacy, or does things such as removing windows or doors, turning off the utilities, or changing the locks, a court might consider the person to have been “constructively evicted.” Most courts allow tenants to break their lease without further rent obligation if they have been constructively evicted.
- The landlord harasses the tenant;
- The tenant starts active military duty.
If none of these exceptions apply, then a tenant who breaks a lease owes the landlord the full amount of rent for the remaining lease period.
Tenants in Alabama cannot withhold rent or use a “repair and deduct” strategy if landlords fail to make important repairs that are necessary to keep the rental in good condition and habitable. “Repair and deduct” is allowed in some states. This lets the tenant obtain the repair from a third party and then deduct the cost from their rent payment. Alabama does not permit this.
In Alabama, tenants should make a repair request in writing, deliver the notice to the landlord, and then give the landlord at least 14 days to accomplish the repair. A person can give the landlord less time, if the situation is an emergency.
If the landlord fails to make the repairs, tenants can move out without responsibility for paying rent through the end of the lease term. An alternative would be for the tenants to remain in the rental and sue the landlord for damages, which would be the difference between the rent called for by the lease and the value of the rental in light of the fact that it was uninhabitable. Judges can also order landlords to make repairs in the appropriate circumstances.
Tenants in Alabama who are evicted for failure to pay rent can assert the landlord’s failure to make needed repairs as a counterclaim. But this does not mean that tenants should withhold rent. When tenants file a counterclaim in an eviction lawsuit, they must pay all rent due to the court. The court then considers the counterclaim. If the judge decides that the counterclaim is frivolous, the landlord might be able to obtain attorneys’ fees from the tenant in addition to all rent owed. Or, if the judge rules in favor of the tenant, the tenant may get back some part or all of the rent they have paid.
Under a typical lease, a landlord cannot raise the rent or change other terms until the lease term ends. Of course, if the rental agreement provides for a change during the term of the lease, then it is allowed. A landlord cannot force a tenant to move out before the lease ends, unless the tenant fails to pay the rent or violates other terms, such as repeatedly hosting loud social events or otherwise annoying other tenants.
In these cases, landlords in Alabama must follow specific legal procedures for terminating the tenancy. For example, a landlord must give a tenant at least seven days’ notice to pay the rent or leave before filing an eviction lawsuit.
If a tenant has used or possessed illegal drugs in their rented premises, their landlord may give the tenant an unconditional notice to quit. This means that the tenant has only seven days to move out. If the tenant does not correct the situation and inform the landlord, the landlord may terminate the lease and evict the tenant if the tenant does not leave voluntarily.
Is a Tenant Always Responsible for Paying the Entire Rent Due for the Remaining Lease Term?
Generally speaking, a tenant is responsible for paying the full amount of rent due for the entire term of the lease, even if the tenant does not in fact occupy the leased premises. However, Alabama law does impose on a landlord the duty to make every reasonable effort to find a new tenant for the rental unit if a tenant vacates the premises before the end of their lease term.
This is called mitigating damages. It does not matter why the first tenant broke the lease. This means the tenant who breaks the lease is only responsible to pay rent after leaving for the period of time when the property is vacant.
The bad news is that if the landlord tries to rent out the property to another tenant, but cannot find one, the tenant who broke the lease is still liable for paying rent for the remainder of their lease term.
A landlord is likely to first use the tenant’s security deposit to cover the amount of rent owed. But if the deposit is not sufficient, the landlord can sue the tenant for any amount that remains unpaid.
Does Alabama Law Allow A Tenant To Mitigate Their Own Damages?
A tenant who breaks a rental agreement can offer the landlord a replacement tenant with good references and acceptable credit. When a person wants to end a lease early, and has no real legal justification for doing so, there are better ways to handle the situation than to move out and hope that the landlord finds a new tenant quickly.
A better approach is to give the landlord as much notice as possible, writing a sincere letter to the landlord explaining the reasons for which the tenant is compelled to leave early. If the tenant can offer the landlord a well-qualified replacement tenant with good credit and references, then the tenant would want to do that. If not, the tenant might ask the landlord to negotiate an amount the tenant can pay in settlement, i.e., an amount that might be less than the full amount owed under the lease.
If My Lease Ends and I Do Not Want to Leave My Apartment, Can My Landlord Force Me to Leave?
A landlord has the right to terminate a tenancy at the end of a lease. If a landlord wants to end a lease when the lease term expires, some states require the landlord to give notice to the tenant even though the lease specifies the termination date. Sixty days is usually enough notice, but a landlord would want to consult local law to see what kind of notice is sufficient notice of the termination of their lease.
When a lease ends, a tenant has the legal obligation to vacate the premises. Again, it would be advisable for the tenant to give the landlord notice that the tenant intends to vacate the premises when the lease expires, just for the sake of clarity. If the tenant stays and continues to pay rent, e.g., on a monthly basis. after the lease term ends, and the landlord accepts the rent payments, in most states this means the tenant would then have a new month-to-month lease.
Of course, the tenant can ask to sign a new rental agreement and if the landlord agrees, they can conclude a new lease.
A landlord may terminate a month-to-month lease but only alter giving proper notice to the tenant. Most states require at least 30 days’ notice to terminate a month-to-month rental agreement. If a tenant has a month-to-month lease and the landlord gives them notice of termination, the tenant must leave.
In a few states, if a tenant continues to pay rent after a lease expires and the landlord accepts the rent, the former lease is automatically renewed. The new lease is for the same period of time as the former lease and contains the same terms and conditions. So, for example, if the lease is for one year, the new lease would be for a term of one year.
Should I Contact a Lawyer First Before Breaking a Lease?
If you wish to move out of your rental unit before the end of the lease term, you should consult an Alabama landlord-tenant lawyer before talking to your landlord. Your lawyer can advise you of the best ways to avoid financial problems. Your lawyer may be able to negotiate a satisfactory resolution of the issues with your landlord and spare you the loss of money paying rent unnecessarily.
