Changing Name on Lease

We have a two family house; we live in one unit and we rent the other unit. We had 2 people living in our rental. They just signed a new 1 year lease on June 1st. On July 17th (a few days before we were going on vacation) one of the women living in the apartment sent an email to us and her roommate stating that she had to move out in 2 weeks (her roommate was on vacation at the time). The person moving out wanted to find someone on Craigslist to move into the apartment by August 1st so that she could get her half of the security deposit back. Since we were on vacation and didn’t get back until July 28th, it would have been very difficult for us to meet someone, run credit checks, etc.. so that they could move in by August 1st. Also, our remaining tenant who was also on vacation until the end of July did not want the person moving out to find her a new roommate; she had a friend that could move in but not until September 1st. We told our remaining tenant that it was fine to have her friend move in Sept. 1st (pending approval) and that we will have to use the person moving out’s half of the security deposit to cover August’s rent. Even though she broke the lease without asking and without 30 days notice, we would have returned the security deposit if someone else moved in by August 1st (or a prorated security deposit if they moved in sometime in August) but the timing didn’t work out and we can’t afford to not collect half of the rent for the month. The reason I’m posting is that I’m not sure if legally, we have to have the person who moved out sign something that gets her name off of the lease or can I just have her roommate sign something stating that she moved out. I would rather not have to contact our former tenant because she may not be cooperative since we’re not able to give her her security deposit back. I appreciate any advice!

zlt99

in Landlord 11 years and 11 months ago

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greenmountain | 11 years and 11 months ago

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Normally, I reply to tile, waterproofing and bathroom issues, not legal issues, but I know this one. An agreement to continue a contract even though one of the original signers has changed is called “Novation.” For instance, I signed a commercial lease with my corporation’s tenant. The tenant merged with another company and formed a new corporation, which had no rights under the lease. But, we decided to continue the original agreement, and changed the name on the lease from the old tenant to the new one using a novation. If you search on that word, you may find a legal form. This is not legal advice, just my experience.

ventilated | 11 years and 11 months ago

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There’s no reason for the person who moved out to sign anything. Just be sure to keep her Email notice to you that she was moving out. If you’re feeling super-cautious, take photos of the room(s) she vacated. Also, there’s no reason to add the new roommate to the existing lease unless you prefer. Otherwise, ask the remaining tenant, whose name is on the lease, to create a roommate agreement that both roommates sign. When it’s time for lease renewal, you can decide whether to add new roommate to the lease.