HELP! Ending Lease early with apartment / Military

Question

Okay here's the situation. My girlfriend's apartment (and the one right across from her) got broken into last Friday. We live in Texas. She has a son that's about 2 years old.

First off, is there anything that can she can do to get out of her lease? I've googled lots of Texas Tenant laws, and all it said was she can get out if there is domestic violence or if there is military leave. I know when landlords lease a place, they have to provide a peaceful and safe area to live in (not sure what this really means).

2ndly, her baby's daddy is in the military (USMC), but he lives in Florida. He mentioned something on the lines of he might be able to get her out of the lease because the son is part of government property and that could be considered damages to government property or something on the lines of that , or because the son is part of the government that he can't be around an unsafe environment. Does anyone know what he is referring to?

My girlfriend talked to the apartments today, and they are not letting her out of her lease. The people who broke in, literally kicked the door down (both door's actually , neighbors door).

Does anyone know if ANYTHING can be done about this? She has a police report and all that jazz, but with the searching that I've done, it sounds like she's S O L.

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks

Answer 1

Landlords are NOT responsible and cannot do anything about crime in the area - THEY are not the ones that broke in the door. So - NO- She CANNOT break her lease for this.  If she tries, she will have lots of fees to pay.

Now they are responsible for fixing the door but that is the extent of their obligations.

Answer 2

Getting out of a lease for security concerns is always a crapshoot at best. A landlord in Texas needs to provide a few basic things in the realm of security, and he is required to maintain those things. If he does that, he is keeping up. Those things, however are limited to very basic stuff...locks, lights, latches...that kinda thing. No extraordinary means necessary.

The only hope you have is really if the landlord acted negligently. So, if he had or should have had good reason to believe that the place was not safe with those precautions mentioned above, and he did nothing, you might have a case.

Still, you will have to take it through the courts, and for that you will need a local attorney or legal aid to help you out a bit.

Oh and the jarhead's advice is, unfortunately, almost laughable. Damages to government property in that sense don't even apply to him, let alone his offspring. At most, you could use that kind of thing as a bluff if the property manager is drooling moron.

Security is no laughing matter though. If she feels like she is in serious danger, she should absolutely talk with an attorney about her options. Even if they are nothing, I would, in her shoes, move out and work something out. The landlord can only hold her liable on her lease until it is re-rented, and the landlord cannot refuse to attempt to re-rent it.

Answer 3

I'm not aware of any way for her to get out of the lease based on this.  I would call up the county/ city office where she lives (in the blue pages - landlord./ tenant affairs, or something like this) and ask them - there could possibly be some odd law about this where you live (or maybe she could find out what needs to happen for her to be able to break the lease) but I think she may be SOL.  

Maybe if she need to move to FL to be near the husband (or could credibly pretend this) then maybe she could use a military exemption, but unless the dad is on the lease I'm not even sure this would work.  I don't have any idea what the dad is saying (and the son being part of the gov't) and this sounds a bit lame to me, but I guess there could be something to it (the county office would probably know about this, if it were valid).