Legal advice on my lease

[kevkev60614]

I moved from an apartment in FL to IL two months ago. To get out of my lease, I told my landlord that I'd pay for a realtor to rent out the apt and keep paying rent until a replacement tenant was found. The landlord chose a realtor she'd used before and liked; that apt had rented out in less than a month. The realtor was $1,800 and the landlord and I agreed verbally that the rental price would be set at my rent amount, $1,500/mo.

After a couple weeks my wife and I get antsy and call the realtor to ask if there'd been any interest. He says that there has, and that at $1,500 we're the best priced rental in the neighborhood. Regardless we tell him that we'll pay for the first month if the renter signs by 9/20.

Today (9/20) I call the realtor to tell him that we'll pay for the first month if the renter signs by 10/20. I ask him where he's advertising and he tells me realtor.com, coldwellbanker.com, palmbeachpost.com (weekends only) as well as his own website. I check all but the post, and...
[*]it's not on coldwellbanker.com[*]it's listed on his website with no pic for $1,600[*]it's listed on realtor.com with no pic for $1,600 and no mention of me paying the first month's rent

So obv this place will never rent because this realtor sucks at life. But way more important is that the landlord put the place up for a different price than she and I agreed on. I made a mistake by not involving myself in the process and trusting her not to [censored] me in the ass.

My lease is up on 4/20/08. I could stop payment on the 9/20 check if I hurry. What I feel like doing is cancelling the check, telling my landlord to keep the $1,800 realtor fee and $3,000 security deposit, and then go [censored] herself.

OOT, what's my play?

[bobman0330]

I hear lawyers are good for legal advice. But as a purely practical matter, paying almost 5 grand to a landlord WHO IS SCAMMING YOU seems like a pushover move.

[neuroman]

Not legal advice: advertise the place yourself, find a qualified renters. If your landlord won't let them rent it out, find another qualified renter.

If your landlord still won't let them rent it out, stop paying your landlord IMMEDIATELY and sue to get the $3000 security deposit back. Also, $3000 deposit, wtf? You got antique furniture in there or something?

[bobman0330]

Why does your LL even still have your deposit? You left months ago, right?

[pseudo t-bone]

while you have a duty to make payments under the lease, your landlord has a duty to mitigate its damages once you breach the lease. even though you reached any oral agreement with the landlord, it doesn't mean much - all agreements dealing with real property have to be in writing.

if you had simply left, your landlord could recover from you the rent you would have owed until a replacement tenant was found plus the cost of finding the replacement tenant. basically, you offered to pay the landlord everything it would be entitled to.

it's up to you how to proceed now, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to send a letter outlining the agreement, noting that you have paid for a real estate agent, and then stating that you feel the landlord has had a reasonable opportunity to find a replacement tenant, and you will not be making any more payments. problem with this is that the landlord could potentially sue you for breach of lease damages in excess of what you have already paid. depending on the lease, the landlord would probably be able to recover attorney fees from you if it is successful.

[kevkev60614]

[ QUOTE ]
Why does your LL even still have your deposit? You left months ago, right?

[/ QUOTE ]
Because it was our agreement that I'd continue paying until a replacement tenant was found.

$3,000 isn't really unreasonable. It's two months rent. Some places in FL take three.

[mosdef]

[ QUOTE ]
Because it was our agreement that I'd continue paying until a replacement tenant was found.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think you are coming to the realization that this was a bad agreement to make. Also, you should have clued in that when she said she would try to get a replacement at $1,500 per month she would have exactly zero motivation to find a new person since you've promised to pay that amount indefinitely anyway.

But since you've called this a "verbal agreement" I'm not sure it matters. Why did you need to take a terrible deal to get out of the lease?

[NT!]

[ QUOTE ]

I moved from an apartment in FL to IL two months ago. To get out of my lease, I told my landlord that I'd pay for a realtor to rent out the apt and keep paying rent until a replacement tenant was found. The landlord chose a realtor she'd used before and liked; that apt had rented out in less than a month. The realtor was $1,800 and the landlord and I agreed verbally that the rental price would be set at my rent amount, $1,500/mo.

[/ QUOTE ]

you're a retard for offering this and that's why you're up [censored] creek now. sorry.