Abandonment

Question 1

What is abandonment?

Answer 1

An abandonment occurs when the tenant unilaterally returns possession of the leased premises before the lease expires WITHOUT the landlord’s consent.

Question 2

What must a tenant do after abandoning a rental?

Answer 2

The tenant will have to continue paying rent until the landlord is able to find a replacement tenant.

Question 3

What happens if a tenant, that abandon’s a rental, refuses to pay rent?

Answer 3

If the tenant refuses to pay rent, the landlord is entitled to damages for the difference between the original rent and the rent received from the replacement tenant.

Question 4

What is surrender?

Answer 4

A surrender terminates the lease agreement and ends the landlord-tenant relationship between both parties.

Question 5

How does a surrender occur?

Answer 5

A surrender occurs when:
1) A tenant returns possession of the leased premises to the landlord before the expiration of the lease; AND
2) the landlord consents (express or implies (drastically changing the property))