Real estate Q&A: Can I break lease in poorly maintained building?

Q: I lease an apartment in a poorly maintained building. Lately, it has gotten to the point where the smell is literally making me sick. I want to move, but I signed a one-year lease. Can I get out of my lease due to this? — Cara

A: When a property is leased, it creates a legal relationship with benefits and responsibilities for the landlord and the tenant. The tenant has to pay rent, not damage the property, and follow the rules in the lease and the community. The landlord gets paid the rent but, in return, has to provide a livable home for the tenant.

While the lease agreement may split up maintenance responsibilities, the landlord is ultimately responsible for the property’s condition.

When a problem arises in any relationship, communication can be vital in resolving it. Contact your landlord and discuss the problem. It is possible that your landlord does not even know about the issue and will work on fixing it as soon as you tell her.

If your landlord ignores the issue or dismisses your concerns, try again, but this time in writing. This lets her know you are serious about the problem and helps create a record of your efforts to get your landlord to live up to her responsibilities.

Typically, a tenant can terminate a lease agreement if the property has become uninhabitable and the landlord does not take appropriate corrective action. The tenant must notify the landlord in writing and demand the problem be worked, typically within seven days. If the landlord does not make a good-faith effort to fix things, the tenant can terminate the lease and move out.

To be clear, for a property to be uninhabitable, it really must be unlivable. I have seen many tenants say a problem makes a property unlivable, stop paying rent, but remain in the home. This only leads to more problems for the tenant because if the property really were unlivable, they would not be able to stay there.

If there are problems, but the property can still be lived in, the tenant must continue paying the rent while holding the landlord accountable for not living up to their responsibilities.