How Do You Perform An Apartment Lease Transfer In Nj?
We are leaving an apartment but the lease is not up until October. We have many prospective tenants for a takeover but are unfamiliar with the process. Will we get our deposit back? Will the new tenant have to make a deposit? What is the process?
Tags: Apartment, Lease, Perform, Transfer
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on Wednesday, December 16th, 2009 at 1:22 pm and is filed under Lease Renewal, Q & A.
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Your lease should have a clause that describes the procedure for subletting, if it is allowed.
If it isn’t allowed, your landlord will probably allow it anyway because you will just break your lease and they won’t get any damages because you had a qualified tenant willing to take over. It’s in their best interests to allow it, so most do, even if the lease doesn’t say so.
Call the management company or your landlord and ask what needs to be done. Sometimes all that is needed is an assignment.
As far as the deposit, the new tenant will make a new deposit to the landlord and you will get your deposit back (unless the assignment says different). This is also assuming your landlord followed the Security Deposit Act in NJ. If they didn’t, update your post to mention this.
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ibu guru: Lease transfers are VERY common in the NJ/NYC metro area. Maybe they don’t exist where you are, but I do several a month. People are transferred to and from this area constantly, and landlords really don’t have a choice when it comes to dealing with it.
Read your Lease! There is no such thing as a “lease transfer.” Subletting may be barred entirely, or may be subject to the Landlord’s prior written approval.
After you read your Lease, then ask the Landlord for permission to sublet and offer to advertise, obtain the credit references or whatever else the Landlord requires. If subletting is barred by your Lease, you still might be able to persuade him if you have a good enough reason and are willing to do whatever is required. If subletting is okay with the Landlord, the prospective subleasee must still submit credit references, etc., and meet all requirements of the Landlord, then the sublease is signed between Landlord and new tenant, and the deposit is between them.
If subletting is barred, which the Landlord may have the right to do under your Lease, you must pay out the full term of the Lease.
You might or might not get your deposit back since you are violating the terms of your Lease with early termination. Read your Lease!
You can’t “transfer” a lease unless the landlord concurs, so you’d better start there.
You need to speak with the landlord/managment. Are you terminating your lease or subleasing?