Should you find a subleaser instead of breaking your lease?

I see it time and time again on various rental Q&A sites, in chat rooms and on discussion boards: Tenants are shocked to discover that if they want to move out of their apartments before a lease's natural expiration date, landlords can indeed hold them financially responsible for rent payments through the original lease period.

"Can the landlord really charge me rent if I'm not living there?"

Yes, he can.

If you need to move out of your apartment before your lease is up, one alternative to the expensive dilemma of lease-breaking is subletting, or subleasing. Read about subletting out your apartment, including working with your landlord to find a suitable sublessee and the importance of collecting a security deposit and signing a sublease agreement, in Is Subletting a Good Alternative to Breaking Your Apartment Lease?

In the article is a link to a free sample sublease agreement from the Tenant Resource Center, based in Madison, Wisc.



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