If my lease agreement is not signed by the lessor does that make the contract void?

Question

I am breaking the lease at my appartment to buy a house and the manager told me that I forfeit my deposit plus two additional months of rent. I'm fine with this because this is listed in my lease contract. However she also told me that I would be charged for any work, such as repainting, that needs to be done on the appartment. This is contrary to what is in the aggrement, and I was looking for ways to contest it when I noticed that my contract was never signed by the lessor. Could I use that as grounds for breaking my lease and not paying additional fees over and above my deposit and extra rent?

Answer 1

You can break your lease, but moving out at the end of the term vs moving out early still holds you responsible for any repairs that need to be done in order to restore the apartment to the initial conditions.

Answer 2

No, it doesn't make the contract void.  In certain instances, it could make the contact unenforceable against the person who did not sign, meaning you, the lessee, could not enforce the agreement against the lessor.  But, that's moot anyway, since you've already lived in the apartment and are moving out.

The landlord can still charge you for any necessary repairs and cleaning, just as if you were vacating at the end of the lease.  But, check your state's statutes to see what can legally be charged.  I don't see how landlord can charge for repainting, unless you deliberately destroyed the walls.  In most instances, landlord cannot charge for normal "wear and tear."

In the end, since the landlord is already taking your deposit, she will need to sue you for any additional fees.  If what she wants is unreasonable, tell her to sue you, and let a judge decide.  My guess is that since you are already forfeiting your security deposit and 2 months rent, the judge will be less than sympathetic to the landlord's request for additional payments from you.

Answer 3

I'm sure your landlord has a fully executed copy of the lease.  Even if he/she does not, any sane judge will see your sign copy as an acceptance on your part of the lease terms.  Nice try though.