Landlord selling house, Can I sue ?

Question

I only moved into a room that Im sharing in a house with another roommate and my landlady.

Well after just a month she did some renovations and suddenly has a buyer ! im furious!

She is offering to refund my rent and security in order to get us to leave into two months. And she says she feels badly and will give me one months paid rent so i can have easier time finding a plac.e

I want to stay put ....

My lease still has 5 months on it.

Can I sue to stay put ?

Answer 1

Sue?   Not sue ans win, but you can try and sue.

She has every right to sell her property and if the new owner want to move in they have every right to move in.

If the house will remain income property then your lease is sold with the house and is still in effect.

Answer 2

What does your contract say about 'notice'??

I sincerely doubt you'll win your case. She sounds like a very reasonable woman.

Answer 3

Financian...'s answer is closest to what I would suggest.  

In the first place you mentioned that you had a room in a house.  You said that you had a "lease."  You have been there a month and you have 5 months to go.  That would mean you have a 6 month lease.  That sounds rather unusual to me in the first place because it is a room and you usually would not have a written lease for a room and secondly it is for 6 months and again you normally would not have a written lease for 6 months.  

So the first question is do you have a written lease or are you talking about an oral agreement.  Oral agreements are still enforceable but you have to have some way to prove the terms.  

Additionally some contracts (like a lease) in some jurisdictions must be written or they are void.  Contracts for work on your house are void if not written in NJ for example.  The law will change from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and it will cost you time or money to discover what your rights are in yours.  

So you have some kind of agreement.  In some jurisdictions a lease is a right to the use of property.  To the extent that the landlady has "sold" you the right to use the property what she has to subsequently sell to another owner is limited.  She can only sell the property subject to the terms of any lease that she has already granted.  In this case you could simply stay put and be withing your rights.

However, by your saying that, "she did some renovations and suddenly has a buyer" it suggests that you knew that she was trying to sell the house.  A lease is a contract and any lease, like any contract, is subject to the term that are spelled out in the agreement.  It seems unlikely if you both knew that she was trying to sell you would have terms that allowed you to stay in the event of a sale.

Where a contract is silent regarding a particular term, common law or usual practice takes precedent.  Without a lease you would be on a month to month basis and would be afforded no more than one months notice which you would have to pay for.  

If you were to "sue" you most likely would not be able to sue for "specific performance" (being able to stay) this is for unusual cases where nothing else will do, but only could sue for damages.  You would be required to mitigate damages (find another place to live) and your damage would be the difference between the old and new place and possibly moving expenses but this is questionable as you would have moving expenses at the end of the lease regardless.  It is unlikely that this difference would be more than the months rent you have been offered.  If you have no damages other than your annoyance you have no "cause of action" (reason to sue.)  

The only other suggestion you might be offered is to play hard ball and refuse to move.  This could be only a bargaining chip for getting more money and you might lose even the month you have been offered and still have to move.

--------------------- E D I T ---------------------------

I am very sorry to hear that your bf is calling you a brat.  I am also sorry to hear that your landlady's father died and that she also has to move out of state.  If it was your father who had died do you think that the Landlady should let you out of the lease if you had to move?  I know it may seem very strange to you but sometimes even with all the law and evidence on our side we can still decide to give up.  A friend of mine was owed $20,000 by another friend.  He wasn't wealthy and desperately needed the money but he forgave the debt because the friendship was more important.  

You will have to decide what is more important.  Certainly you could create a fuss.  You might be within your rights and even be able to stay.  Down the road this landlady for whom you could have done this favor is probably not going to be a friend.  Maybe your bf is going to start thinking about how much time he wants to spend with someone who is unforgiving.  

But you may feel that you owe the landlady nothing and you need to take everything that you can get.  If you lose the bf you have to realize that there will be others and maybe one who thinks more like you do.  

Let us know what you decide.

Answer 4

You can, but you'd look really bad. I personally think that you're being completely unreasonable about this - she's gone WAY above and beyond her legal obligations so you'll have as stress-free a move as possible.

In short:

1. Yes, you can.

2. You probably won't win, unless your lease states that you won't be able to get evicted for any reason until it expires.

3. Yes, you're being a brat. Your landlord's father died for god's sake.

Answer 5

yes you might be able to becouse you do have a lease ether that or she has provide a place for you to stay or vice verca i would ask a lawer they normaly have free constaiolion  

Answer 6

She's being reasonable.  Do whatever you want.  You sound irrational anyway.  I feel bad for the lady that has to put up with you.  Are you sure it's not your whining and complaining that's causing stress with your boyfriend?

Answer 7

I would just take the money. I understand how you feel but it will be too much of a hassle, time, and money to sue. She seems to be a reasonable person so I wouldn't sue her.  

Answer 8

We were in this position years ago, but we knew going in that the house would be going on the market due to a divorce.  Maybe the lease will be transferred to the new owner.  Hope it all works out for you.

Answer 9

it will cost you more money to sue once you're through with everything, plus suing her won't make her stay put in the house either. you won't win a case and will spend thousands of dollars just so you can stay in an apartment you like...find a new place, and shes being very nice about it too so be happy about that.

Answer 10

If your lease has a clause about this type of situation your SOL. Look over the lease and look for potential areas that couls support a case for you two to stay.  

Answer 11

You could sue, what a hassle. Take the money and run. Sounds like a good deal.

Answer 12

Nope. I don't know about your state, but in PA, landlords only need to give 30 days notice if they want a tenant to leave. My mom is selling one of her buildings, and the new landlord plans to move into one of the units. He has to kick one of the current tenants out so he can live in her unit. She just moved in, but with 30 days notice, it's completely legal.

Check your lease carefully for how much notice she needed to give you. If it's under two months, then what she's doing is legal and you can't do anything about it. Unfortunately, that's the risk you take when you rent.  

Answer 13

YES  

Answer 14

I'd take the money and move. I know it is a hassle, but you have no alternative here.  At least she gave you two months. Some don't even do that.  And consider this as well, could be she is in a financial situation that is forcing her to sell.  Benefit of the doubt first.    

Answer 15

No! You cannot! It is her house, and she has given you ample time to move out...  

Answer 16

what did the ad say?

did it say "room to rent" or "house to share"?

you are then a "boarder" in the owners home.

You are paying rent but you are a "boarder"

If there is no lease, then the original ad describes what you agreed to rent.

As a boarder in shared accomodations your have less rights then a renter.

Take the offer.  It is a generous offer.  

or you could do something silly like refuse to leave and have the police force you out.  

You have no documents?

good luck.

Answer 17

Read your lease...   Normally the buyer of the property will have to honor the current lease.  They buy the property as the lease is.  They cant change anything.

Now if you dont have a lease, or in the lease it says if the property is sold you must vacate.  Then you have to leave.  You dont have many options.  

And to answer your question, no you cant sue to stay put (unless its in your lease which will be included in the sales contract). If you dont vacate, the sheriff wills how up and arrest you for trespassing and take all your funiture away. Dont let it get ugly. Because it can.

Check the lease.  It should be in there, if its not mentioned you can sue for damanges but you will still have to move.  If it says the new owner has to hold the lease as is, then you have till the end of your lease.

Its not a grey issue, its black and white.  If there is no protection in your lease.  Start packing.

** UPDATE ***

What does your lease say.  You say you have one.  What does it say about transfer of deed or selling of the property?  The new owners will have to let you live there until you lease is up or pay you to get out.   What is in your lease.  Im sorry to make it sound like im dumbing it down.  But its that simple.

Hmm I just read BREATHS...  you know what he brought up something interesting.  I didnt think of and maybe he didnt either.

Are single rooms legal in your zoning?  The zoning might not allow it.  So you could have 1000 page lease that means nothing.  The city will just find that your lease was illegal and you would have to vacate immediately.  You could always sue for civil damanges but not be able to stay in the house.  I would first read your lease.  Then I would call your county and ask for zoning and see if they can even lease 1 room out of their house.  Depending on zoning it might be an illegal lease.  meaning you have to leave, the state or city wont find it valid.

Good luck but those would be the next 2 things I would do, read it and check to see if they can give you a 1 bedroom lease.  You will need to call zoning as I said.  That might be a really easy out for them.  If they can I wouldnt tell them, just say I need 2000 to move.  The sellers might pay it to get you out, or the buyers might.  But I would plan on moving either way.

Answer 18

ask an attorney, not us!  But consider, what kind of h**l she can put you through if you don't go along with her!

Answer 19

Depends on your contract.  But... most likely no.  It is his property and he can do what he wants with it.  It is not fair that you don't get a little say but that is the way life goes.