Life can be unpredictable, and there are a host of reasons why you or your landlord want to end your lease early. Your reason might be personal or professional. You may be getting deployed by the military, getting a divorce, or losing your job. Alternatively, you may feel that your landlord is making it unbearable to live on the property. The best way to end your lease early is through a lease agreement release form. Using this form will mean that, as a tenant, you do not have to worry about your landlord making any claims against you. And as a landlord, you would be certain you owe no further obligations to your former tenant. This article will help you understand what a lease release agreement form is, how to go about drafting one, and why you should get one if you intend to end your lease early.
A lease release form is a legal document that discontinues the relationship between a landlord and a tenant as lessee and lessor. In other words, it is a release from the lease agreement. It allows the landlord and the tenant to mutually release each other from their obligations or their liabilities under the lease. It is normal for a landlord to charge a fee for the release, as they are the party more likely to be inconvenienced in this situation. This fee is typically equivalent to one month’s rent. After the parties reach an agreement and have signed the form, the agreement becomes final and the tenant should move out on the agreed date specified on the form. Once this is done, neither the landlord nor the tenant can bring any legal action against the other for ending the lease earlier than planned.
Ending a lease obligation early can be inconvenient even for the person ending it. To do this quickly and without hassle or opposition from the other party, the most convenient way of securing a timely release from a lease agreement is to sign a lease release agreement form. Signing the lease release form means both parties waive any claim they may have against the other for ending the lease early. The lease agreement release form also protects the interests of all the parties involved.
A release form can be simple and only needs to consist of the terms agreed upon by you and your landlord. The goal is to ensure that the relationship is terminated in its entirety and that there are no further obligations to be observed. Here are five important features that should be included in your tenant release form.
It is best to make reference to and attach a copy of the original lease agreement. This can be done under a heading usually termed ‘recite’. Here, reference is made to the original lease and its terms as stated.
It is necessary to include this paragraph to leave no room for ambiguity. This is the date that the lease agreement release contract will take effect.. On this date, the tenant will move out of the landlord’s property and all obligations and liabilities will cease.
This is a very important paragraph. In this paragraph, an explanation of the reason for the release will be given. This could be that the lease agreement is nearing an end and both parties do not wish to renew it. Here, it will be agreed by both parties that there are no dues to be settled or no liabilities on both parties other than any stated in the lease release agreement. This paragraph is evidence that the lease was mutually terminated.
If the landlord is charging any money for the early termination of the lease, it should be contained in this paragraph. The landlord may be charging the equivalent of one month’s rent or be retaining part or all of the security deposit for the unit. Where the latter is the case, the total security deposit for the unit needs to be stated.. It is also good to include whether there is any outstanding rent to be paid to the landlord by the tenant, however, this can be stated in a different paragraph.
If the form is not signed, then it has no legal effect. It needs to be signed by both the landlord and their tenants with their titles and the witness’s details.
Remember that this is not an exhaustive list of what to include, but just a few main things the lease release agreement should have.
The following steps will help you to create a lease agreement properly:
It is a necessary first step to communicate with the other party who is to sign the contract. You should reach out to them to avoid catching them by surprise, which may prolong the process. You should make them aware that you intend to end your lease early and would like to use a lease agreement release form to ensure that everyone’s legal rights and interests are protected. Coordinating with them will make the process more efficient and less time-consuming for both parties.
An important feature of a lease agreement release form is that both parties mutually agree that the lease is terminated early. For this to happen it is important that the parties agree on the terms to be contained in the contract. Unless the parties agree and sign the lease release agreement, a host of legal issues will arise for the party terminating the lease agreement early or for the party refusing to terminate. In an effort to avoid this, a key step of entering into a lease release agreement form is coming to a mutual understanding of the terms to be contained in the contract. This typically requires some negotiation and a financial settlement.
After you have agreed to the terms to include in the agreement, a simple way to move forward is to download a contract template which you can get here for FREE. This template can be edited to suit your specific needs and may even provide some guidance as to what further terms you will need to negotiate. It is also advisable to seek some guidance from a licensed attorney.
After downloading the FREE template and editing it to suit your needs, you then need to fill in the necessary information, including the parties’ names, contacts, complete address, forwarding address, and then move out date agreed upon.
Download and edit this sample of a lease agreement release form template PDF and Word document to get started!
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