Breaking a Lease in Bradenton, FL | ALL Legal Reasons [2022]

Last Updated:

April 5, 2022

A guide on correctly breaking leases when living in Bradenton

No one would usually break leases unless some emergency or urgent situations required the renter to break their lease before the stipulated time. Some situations that can cause a renter to break their lease before time can be due to a job change, moving into a different home with a roommate or a partner. The most important part about breaking a rental is a considerable financial loss for renting the home or living space. 

Although there are strict rules regarding termination of leases before the due date in Florida, it is easy to work around these rules to save your money and get out of a lease in Florida without having to pay a fine or penalty. By reading all the information provided in this blog post, you can surely learn more about how you can break a lease without paying the penalty. In addition to this, you will also learn about the professional moving and storage solutions in Bradenton that can help you move to the next location seamlessly. 

Breaking a Lease in Bradenton 

Before the laws regarding tenancy and renting were changed in 2021, the law stated that the tenants had to accept the tenant’s decision to move out of their current home and that the tenant would have to pay the rent for each month until the lease term ended. Also, the landlord would be allowed to charge rent from the previous tenant until a new tenant was found.

However, this renting system caused tenants to be chased for the rent by the landlords as the renters would go away, and the landlords would need to charge the tenants for the months the home was unoccupied.

With the changes in the law, the landlord would be able to provide the renter a lease-breaking or early termination fee. The fee would be no less than double the monthly rent and a two-month notice per the law. These fees are liquidated damages, collected if the landlord cannot find a new renter within two months. With these fees, the landlord would be able to cover their loss.

Bradenton Lease Laws – Tenant Rights and Responsibilities When Signing a Lease in Florida

At first glance, it might seem that you would not break the lease in Bradenton until the mentioned period finishes. However, there are a fair few reasons that would be extremely helpful and valid reasons for you to break a lease while living in Bradenton:

  1. They are being called for military duty, which allows the tenant to break their lease within 30 days by furnishing a hand-written letter.

  1. If the landlord has violated any health or safety codes like hot water, interior maintenance, or locking systems are inefficient.

  1. Suppose the landlord is continuously invading a renter’s privacy or harassing the tenants for any reason while in the home. Then, it can be a valid reason for the renter to break the lease.

Before renting a living or retail space in Bradenton, a tenant must understand some rights and responsibilities. Those rights and responsibilities have been explained as follows:

  • First, a tenant has a right to a private, peaceful living in the home. At any point in time, a tenant cannot be asked to allow the landlord to repair or inspect the home without prior notice. However, as a part of their responsibilities, the tenant should follow building and housing codes and maintain cleanliness. 

  • Tenants can stop paying the security deposit if they believe it is unnecessary. However, the tenant must use the facilities provided by the landlord in a safe and non-harmful way and dispose of garbage regularly as per the building or city codes.

  • As mentioned in the lease agreement, tenants can stop paying rent if the landlord is not fulfilling their duties. In addition, the tenant can provide notice of seven days to the landlord and move out when there is no fulfillment of the agreement from the landlord. However, the tenant should also ensure no disturbance for their neighbors.

So when you move into Bradenton, Florida, with the assistance of professional moving and storage solutions from Sarasota Sunshine Movers, make sure to remember all of the duties and rights as a tenant. Doing so will ensure that you can be a great neighbor and a memorable tenant for your landlord.  

What Happens if You Break a Lease in Bradenton

Usually, in any other state of the USA, there is an urgent need to find a new tenant at the earliest to reduce the chances of financial loss on the landlord’s end. However, when it comes to landlords in Florida, especially Bradenton, landlords have the option to wait until they can find a tenant for their property, which makes the current tenant pay the existing rent until the lease period ends. In case a tenant attempts on breaking the lease in Bradenton, then they could suffer any of the following problems:

  1. Rental history could be damaged since you will need to provide a reference from the previous landlord, and breaking the lease can make it difficult for you to rent anywhere in Bradenton. 
  2. There are chances that you could be penalized if you do not pay the rent for the months you have stayed in a home. Therefore, before leaving your current home and the rent unpaid, you need to inform the landlord about why you are leaving home and not paying the rent. Otherwise, you will end up paying the rent and the lawyer’s fees.

  1. Although landlords do not report the unpaid rent debt to credit bureaus, a well-known rental company could hold you responsible for the unpaid rent and thus cause your credit score to be damaged.

Keeping these points in mind, you can search for the best neighborhoods in Bradenton, Florida, and then move into the city with Sarasota Sunshine Movers. 

How To Get Out Of A Lease In Bradenton

Can you terminate a lease early? If you are unaware of the methods with which the tenant’s early termination of lease agreement is possible, you can learn about them in this blog section. The following points will be helpful for you to understand what important conditions qualify for you on how to break a lease without paying:

Active military duty

  1. Active military duty

According to the Service Members Relief Act, anyone who enters into active military duty after signing a home lease agreement can get out of it by providing a handwritten letter with the reason for getting out of the lease. In addition, the tenant needs to be selected in one of the following categories of “uniformed services to be able to qualify for lease-breaking:

  • Active National Guard
  • Commissioned corps of the Public Health Service
  • Members of the armed forces, and
  • Commissioned corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

According to Federal law, after signing a lease in Florida, the tenant needs to inform the landlord about the active military duty. Therefore the lease will continue until 30 days of the next rent due date.

  1. Violation related to health and safety

Early termination of lease agreement by the tenant can happen if there are violations in the health and safety codes. In addition, the Florida Statute Title VI, Chapter 83.52, states that the landlord must maintain the dwelling unit. Some examples for which a Florida based landlord can be held responsible are as follows :

  • Proper locks 
  • Working smoke detection devices
  • Garbage removal and garbage bins
  • Running water and hot water
  • Common areas that are cleaned regularly and safe
  • Maintenance of structural integrity of the building
  • Working heat and electricity 
  • Reasonable extermination provisions (which requires a 7-day notice from the landlord with only four days for extermination)  

If the landlord has not followed either of the codes, then the tenant will be allowed by law for constructive eviction. 

  1. Harassing the tenant 

 

As per tenancy laws in Florida, the tenant can break the lease if the landlord is harassing them. Measures like turning off utilities, removing doors or windows, or changing the locks are unlawful activities that landlords cannot do. Additionally, the tenant needs to be provided a notice 12 hours before the landlord can enter the rental property. Under the Florida constructive eviction rules, the landlord enters your residence without proper notice.

If the conditions mentioned above are valid, breaking a lease in Bradenton can be done. But, first, let’s discuss the reasons for breaking a lease and minimize the penalty.  The next subheading will talk about some helpful tips on how to break a lease without paying.

Minimize Early Termination Penalty in Bradenton

As the blog’s main topic suggests, a few methods explain the topic of “can you terminate a lease early?” then the topic of “early termination of lease agreement by tenant” was also explained and discussed in great detail. With these topics also comes the question of how can you break your lease without penalty? The points mentioned below can be a guide for you to breaking a lease in Bradenton, Florida:

  1. Contact your landlord regarding the methods on how to break a lease without paying. Being honest about why you want to break the lease might be helpful for you, and the landlord may also be willing to help you with the resources they have on hand. Also, a new tenant might be a great way to get out of the rent as it allows the landlord to increase their rent.

  1. While living in Bradenton, checking your Florida lease can help you understand what happens if you break a lease and whether you can break your lease early. If the early termination clause is present, you can break the lease agreement earlier than the mentioned date. If not, you can break the lease agreement early with any clause-based violations done by the landlord for a justified exit.

  1. Subletting your rented accommodation can help you get out of the lease agreement. Written approval from the landlord will allow you to sublet via certified mail, and a return receipt that creates a detail on the subletting plans and a copy of the proposed sublease is useful.

 

Finally, searching for a new tenant or getting in touch with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development officials will make it easier for you to find help with breaking a lease in Bradenton.

Questions to Ask When Researching for breaking a lease in Bradenton

The most commonly asked questions when researching ways to break a lease in Bradenton are as follows:

  1. Should landlords have a grace period for rent before charging late fees, and are late fees legal?

  1. What are rent control laws, how do they work, and when are landlords allowed to raise the rent

  1. Difference between a rental agreement and a lease

  1. Any clauses or conditions in rental or lease agreement that a renter should know about

  1. Financial limit for security deposits by the landlord and its usage

These questions mentioned above will always be favorable for the tenant to know about their rights and be aware of any landlord’s loopholes. Also, when moving into any living accommodation in Bradenton, Florida, always get in touch with Sarasota Sunshine Movers for the professional moving and storage solutions as they are the best and provide a variety of services that make it easy for you to move into your new home.

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