Terminating a rental agreement

[AmberMoon]

Looking for some information on how to possibly get out of a rental agreement for the house we are in, We rented it in Jan of 2005 with a signed 2 year lease.

When we looked at the place in Nov of 2005 the basement portion was not finished and they were redoing it, We spoke with the landlord and in Dec we singed the lease for Jan15th the date he gave us thinking the basement would be completed.

When we rented the place we quickly relised that the landlord was a very bad procrastinator and unless you called daily for a few months straight nothing ever got fixed or completed.

On jan 14th 2005 the night before we were suppost to move in the landlord calls us and says the basement aint done we cant move in, UMMMM wrong we gave our notice here and we must move, plus the UHAUL truck is packed and paid for, So needless to say we move in on the 15th and they tell us it will be finished within a week, ok we can deal with that we just wont go down there.

Well we also figured out that the house hadent been painted as stated it would be, A lot of stuff was not completed through out the house that we verbally discussed. so needless to say we did the painting and cleaning our selves.

The basment was not completed untill the end of feb, with workers coming and going throughout the day and half the time most of them would only work a few hours a day. ( 1 guy actually worked 8 hours a day alone daily)

So finally they finish and we get the landlord to supply us paint to paint the house this takes 3 weeks to get, And in between us requesting it and him getting it to us his sister calls saying we need to speak with her that she dosent like the colors we requested, LOL are you serious. anyways we called landlord and said do not have her call us again we rented from you.

Anyways making this long ( sorry) over the next year of living here we have had nothing but problems

* No heat in the master bedroom because the landlords son was trying to put a cable outlet in the bedroom walked on all the ducking that leads to our room , no heat in the kitchen and no heat in the upstairs livingroom ( heat in 3of 5 bedrooms,diningroom, bathrooms, basement(weak)

* 2 phone outlets in a 3000 sq ft house ( verbally spoken was suppost to be fixed)

* was suppost to have fridge and stove when we moved in we went 2 weeks without either, ( there was a workers fridge downstairs they told me to use while the other guys put thier paintbrushes and food in it while they worked and it was in basement )

* When fridge arrived it didnt work because they plugged it in after they dropped it off ( landlord and son) so waited another 2 weeks for one to be delivered from used store

* basement floor floods when it rains really hard ( was suppost to repair)

* went 1 1/2 months with no water usuage in the basement because the pump for the basement went and he wasnt wanting to get anyone else out here besides the guy he knows who refused to come out here because we dont have a doorbell - also there was nats because the septic where the pump stopped working is located in one of the basement bedrooms and i always had no way of using washer or dryer because they were in basement

*went almost 1 month with a backed up sink in the upstairs bathroom, after repeated calls and money out of our pocket to get it unclogged he sent someone to only be told that the pipe is clogged above the kitchen sink and it was due to it looks like plaster/paint and they said it was probably from the guys doing the basement and it just finally plugged

* No doorbell ( we finally paid for one out of our own poicket) and NO house key to the front door only a side door

* 2 holes in the basment ceiling that the son did to try and find a wire and was suppost to come back and repair

* garage full of last tenants stuff that was suppost to be removed but hasnt been

* verbally agreed that both fireplaces in the house would work, only 1 works with no vent closer so the landlord got styraphone to put in it while we arent using it.

these are the major things and we have just had enough of trying to call him daily to get things repaired, and would like to know were we stand. and what possibly our options are, we have always paid our rent and never left before a lease was up so not real sure what to do..

Landlord also has postdated checks ( against our will) and our checks have always cleared whe he has cashed them and to top it off our landlord is some type of attorney :(

[Shaner]

You can't get out of the lease. You signed a 2 year lease, you are responsible for 2 years.

What you can do is put your requests/complaints in writing. Have the landlord sign and date it if possible. If not, no worries.

If they don't act in a reasonable amount of time, go to the housing authority. You can apply to have your rent withheld until all the repairs are made. If your complaints are reasonable, the tribunal will likely approve your application and will allow you to withhold a certain amount of rent, perhaps even all of it until the repairs are made.
They may also order the landlord to make those repairs.

[Tjalfe]

http://www.orht.gov.on.ca/userfiles/HTML/nts_3_8102_1.html
edit: wow.. this looks messy, check the original site, tables were not pasted properly :(
Tenant with a fixed term agreement (e.g. six-month or one year or longer lease)


60 days notice

The termination date cannot be earlier than the end of the fixed term.


Tenant’s Notice to Terminate the Tenancy (Form N9)



Termination of Tenancy by a Tenant
This guide explains how and when a tenant may terminate a tenancy.

You may wish to read these related guides:

* Terminating a Tenancy
* Reasons for Terminating a Tenancy By a Landlord
* Terminating a Tenancy in a Care Home



A tenant who gives a written Notice to Terminate according to the table below, does not have to give a reason for termination.

Type of tenancy


Amount of notice required


Notice form required

Daily or weekly tenant


28 days notice

For a weekly tenant, the termination date cannot be earlier than the end of a seven-day rental period.


Tenant’s Notice to Terminate the Tenancy (Form N9)

Monthly tenant without a fixed term agreement


60 days notice

The termination date cannot be earlier than the end of a month.


Tenant’s Notice to Terminate the Tenancy (Form N9)

Tenant with a fixed term agreement (e.g. six-month or one year or longer lease)


60 days notice

The termination date cannot be earlier than the end of the fixed term.


Tenant’s Notice to Terminate the Tenancy (Form N9)

A tenant in a care home

(Note: A tenant who agreed to rent a care home unit has the right to consult a third party about the agreement, and to cancel the agreement within five days after the agreement was made, by notifying the landlord in writing.)


30 days notice

The termination date can be at any time during a rental period or fixed term tenancy.


Tenant’s Notice to Terminate the Tenancy (Form N9)



A tenant may terminate their tenancy early, with written notice to the landlord, for the following reasons:

Reason


Amount of notice required


Notice form required

A landlord refused consent to the assignment of the unit, or did not respond within 7 days to a tenant’s request for consent to assign the unit.


28 days notice for daily or weekly
tenants.

30 days notice all other tenants.

The termination date can be at any time during a rental period or fixed term tenancy. It must be given to the landlord within 30 days of the date the consent was requested.


Tenant’s Notice to Terminate the Tenancy (Form N9)

The landlord has given the tenant a Notice to Terminate for any of these reasons:

*
demolition
*
conversion of use
*
major repairs or renovations
*
landlord’s own use
*
purchaser’s own use



The tenant may give notice to terminate the tenancy at an earlier date, if at least 10 days notice is given.

The termination date can be at any time during a rental period or fixed term tenancy.


Tenant’s Notice to Terminate the Tenancy (Form N9)



A tenant may apply to the Tribunal and ask it to order the termination of the tenancy, for the following reasons:

*
The landlord unreasonably withheld consent to an assignment or sublet of the rental unit,
*
The landlord did not maintain the rental property in a good state of repair and fit for habitation, or did not comply with health, safety, housing or maintenance standards prescribed by law,
*
A landlord, superintendent, property manager, or agent of the landlord did any of the following:
o
Unlawfully entered the rental unit,
o
Altered the locking system of the rental property or unit without giving the tenant replacement keys,
o
Withheld the reasonable supply of a vital service, a care service, or food, that was the landlord’s obligation under the tenancy agreement to supply,
o
Deliberately interfered with the supply of a vital service, care service, or food, even if it was not the landlord’s obligation under the tenancy agreement to supply it,
o
Substantially interfered with the tenant’s reasonable enjoyment of the rental property or unit,
o
Harassed, obstructed, coerced, threatened, or interfered with the tenant.



June 10, 2002

[AmberMoon]

Ty for the info I had hoped that laws protected the tenents but looks like the landlords even if not good are protected :(

I guess ill have to be approaching him and see where that gets me if not i guess ill be going the other route

[Sylvestre]

call the ORHT and explain the situation. you may be able to get some recourse etc. it won't be easy but they will at the very least explain what procedures you need to do correctly.

if looking for info, go directly to the source. You'll get too much conflicting and/or incorrect info here.

[Nemodigital]

call the ORHT and explain the situation. you may be able to get some recourse etc. it won't be easy but they will at the very least explain what procedures you need to do correctly.

if looking for info, go directly to the source. You'll get too much conflicting and/or incorrect info here.
It will also be nearly impossible for them to get the money from you if you move out anyhow since you arent dealing with a rental corp. I would say they didnt stick to their end of the agreement no reason you should stick to your end. Simply by stating this I have a reason to believe the place will be repaired and up to par real fast so perhaps you might not need for follow through with the move out.

[sportsfan99]

It will also be nearly impossible for them to get the money from you if you move out anyhow since you arent dealing with a rental corp. I would say they didnt stick to their end of the agreement no reason you should stick to your end. Simply by stating this I have a reason to believe the place will be repaired and up to par real fast so perhaps you might not need for follow through with the move out.

If there is a contract that would hold up in court.Best bet is try and fix it some how or offer to pay the next 4 months.

[AmberMoon]

While reading on this, i read something about possibly being able to rent it out and that would get me out of my lease, Its a huge house for cheap rent and on a main road close to everything so rerenting it shouldnt be a issue, anyone know anything about this?

[Nemodigital]

While reading on this, i read something about possibly being able to rent it out and that would get me out of my lease, Its a huge house for cheap rent and on a main road close to everything so rerenting it shouldnt be a issue, anyone know anything about this?
Sounds like more of a mess. I would advise against doing this. Just bring a list of all of the expectations that your landlord was obliged to fulfill to him and if he is unable to meet them in say 2 weeks call the ORHT.

[Shaner]

While reading on this, i read something about possibly being able to rent it out and that would get me out of my lease, Its a huge house for cheap rent and on a main road close to everything so rerenting it shouldnt be a issue, anyone know anything about this?

Yes, you can sublet out the apartment/house.
You find someone to take over the remainder of your lease. They will basically move in and you will move out and you will be off the hook. You will still be on the lease until the term has ended though, so if they move out before the lease ends, you're back on the hook.

Tell your landlord you want to sublet out your place. They cannot say no! If they do, tell them to shove it and show them the Tennant Protection Act. It says right in it that unless there is a good reason, they must accept your tennant

You are responsible for finding the tennant and you will need to act as their landlord until such time as the lease expires. Once the lease is 60 days away from being up, give the landlord your notice. 60 days from then, your name comes off the lease and the person you subletted to now deals directly with the landlord.

In all reality though, the landlord will deal directly with the person you sublet to. They aren't going to make the tennant go to you for everything and then you go to them, that just doesn't happen. Either way, they are the landlord of the building so they are responsible for rent and repairs.

I suggest advertising your house and tell your landlord you will be subletting it out. If you want, you can even sublet it out for more money than you are paying.

[TrevorK]

If you can prove to the housing authority that the house you are living in is not habitable, then I'm sure you can get out of it. And I'd say no heat in half the house during winter would qualify....