Property Management Tips for When A Tenant Breaks Their Rental Lease
There’s no denying that the lease is by far one of the essential parts of a landlord’s business because it provides the “framework” for what rent the tenant is going to be expected to pay, when it’s due, what the late fees are, and the rules for the rental property.
What happens though, when the tenant breaks their lease? This is often one area of property management that many landlords get “tied up” and don’t know what step they should take next.
Even though it can be a complicated mess when a tenant breaks their lease, the reality is that there is a process that every landlord should follow, which will help him to deal with the situation professionally while moving on to finding the next tenant.
What to Do When A Tenant Breaks Their Rental Lease
Choose to Stick with The Lease
Even though there are some situations where a landlord can let the tenant out of their rental lease, the reality is that in most cases, when a tenant breaks their contract, the landlord should always first speak with them about their lease commitments rather than letting them just walk away from the lease.
Every lease should have specific instructions when it comes to early termination and what fees a tenant should be expected to pay if they terminate their contract early. Having this language in your lease will dissuade most tenants from just thinking that they can terminate their leases without any financial repercussions.
Search for A New Tenant
One of the worst things that you can do as a landlord is to wait 30 days after your tenant has broken their lease until you start searching for another tenant for the property. Instead of waiting to fill that vacancy, you should begin searching for a new tenant immediately, even while you are still working on making sure that your former tenant paid the early termination fees listed on their lease.
Starting the process immediately of renting to a new tenant will eliminate any financial stress that you could be feeling about filling that vacancy.
When Should You Let a Tenant Out of Their Lease?
Although it is inconvenient when a tenant breaks their leaves, the reality is that there are legitimate reasons when a landlord should let their tenant out of their lease. These reasons include the following:
Active Military – If your tenant is in the military, they legally must be allowed out of their leases especially since active military personnel can be transferred or activated immediately.
Job Transfer – Let’s face it, a job transfer is not going to be the tenant’s fault, and these occur all the time. If your tenant informs you that they’ve been transferred by their company to another city or state, you shouldn’t hesitate to let them break their lease.
Tenant Lost Their Job – In some cases, you may also want to let your tenant break their lease if they recently lost their job, and are unable to find work in the Portland Oregon area.
Life-Changing Circumstances – We’ve provided you with several reasons why you may want to consider letting your tenant out of their lease. Another important reason why you should let your tenant out of their contract includes if they have recently gone through life-changing circumstances and are unable to pay their rent.
In some cases, you may want to consider letting your tenant out of their rental lease if their life could potentially be in jeopardy if they were to continue living in their rental property.
Horrible Tenant – During the years that you own rental properties in Portland, or other cities across the United States, it’s entirely possible that you may have at least one tenant that you would classify as being” ultra-irritating”, or horrible. When you come across these tenants, it’s best to be willing to part ways with them rather than continue renting to them and having to deal with their drama every month.
Contact Rent Portland Homes – Professionals
At Rent Portland Homes – Professionals, we know that property management can be very time-consuming, especially when you have to deal with tenants who may want to break their leases.
Thankfully, instead of having to do all the work yourself, there is a better way to manage rental properties, and the solution is to hire a property manager.
To learn more about the property management services that we can offer you, contact us today by calling (503) 447-7735 or click here, it’s connected with us online.
