Breach of contract on lease?

[mikeK1980]

What is the name of your state Florida?

`I have a question I hope someone can help out with,my wife and I resign our lease back in Jan of this year(2013) and now today 5 months later the property manager tells us they made a mistake on our lease and our rent is going up $5 more than what we sign when we renew our lease.Now I requested a copy of our lease and what they did was they cross out the amount that was printed on the lease and hand written in the new rent amount AFTER we sign the lease 5 months ago!

Now my question is,is this a illegal and consider a breach of contract?

Our property manager is threatened us with a eviction after I told her that we felt this was fraud and possible breach of contract.

What can we do,please help!

Thanks

 

[LdiJ]

What is the name of your state Florida?

`I have a question I hope someone can help out with,my wife and I resign our lease back in Jan of this year(2013) and now today 5 months later the property manager tells us they made a mistake on our lease and our rent is going up $5 more than what we sign when we renew our lease.Now I requested a copy of our lease and what they did was they cross out the amount that was printed on the lease and hand written in the new rent amount AFTER we sign the lease 5 months ago!

Now my question is,is this a illegal and consider a breach of contract?

Our property manager is threatened us with a eviction after I told her that we felt this was fraud and possible breach of contract.

What can we do,please help!

Thanks

Where is YOUR copy of the original lease?

However, if something is hand written in and not initialed by all parties its not valid. They should lose an eviction case.

 

[mikeK1980]

Where is YOUR copy of the original lease?

However, if something is hand written in and not initialed by all parties its not valid. They should lose an eviction case.

My wife has it I ask for a copy(my wife wasn't with me at the moment and I didn't know where my wife had it at),the property claims they are allow to do that but the issue is our signature is on the paper that had the hand written amount.

 

[Gail in Georgia]

What is required is that ALL parties INITIAL by the changes in the lease (in this case the new amount of rent written into the lease).

If you and your wife haven't done this, the change is not legally valid no matter what management claims.

Gail

 

[justalayman]

What is the name of your state Florida?

`I have a question I hope someone can help out with,my wife and I resign our lease back in Jan of this year(2013) and now today 5 months later the property manager tells us they made a mistake on our lease and our rent is going up $5 more than what we sign when we renew our lease.Now I requested a copy of our lease and what they did was they cross out the amount that was printed on the lease and hand written in the new rent amount AFTER we sign the lease 5 months ago!

Now my question is,is this a illegal and consider a breach of contract?

Our property manager is threatened us with a eviction after I told her that we felt this was fraud and possible breach of contract.

What can we do,please help!

Thanks

it is not a breach of contract in itself. It could result in such if they attempt to evict you based on the improper alteration of the contract. What you signed is what you are legally bound to and nothing more. If they forgot to raise the rent that $5, well unless you want to be a nice guy and pay it, you have no obligation to pay it.

If they attempt to evict you, then they are breaching the contract.


so, if it was me, I would tell them; sorry, but I do not wish to pay the $5 per month extra.

and let the chips fall where they may.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Plan on moving at the end of your lease or expect it to go up the legal max.

 

[mikeK1980]

We are not fussy over the extra $5.00 but what gets us mad is we didn't agree to that X amount they are now claiming we owe.

So if we refused to pay that extra amount and just pay the amount we sign too and they refused to accept that,should we consult an attorney then?

Also since this is a illegal contract,do we have the right to break the lease early?

 

[sandyclaus]

We are not fussy over the extra $5.00 but what gets us mad is we didn't agree to that X amount they are now claiming we owe.

So if we refused to pay that extra amount and just pay the amount we sign too and they refused to accept that,should we consult an attorney then?

Also since this is a illegal contract,do we have the right to break the lease early?

The contract itself is not illegal. What is illegal is their unilateral attempt to make a change without written agreement from you.

As has been stated, you are fine now paying the agreed-upon rent per the original lease renewal. If the LL tries to take adverse action against you for not complying with their illegal modification of terms (higher rent), a court is almost certain to side with you.

This is *NOT* grounds to terminate the perfectly valid lease you originally signed. To that lease, you are legally bound until its expiration - unless, of course, the LL decides to let you break it without penalty. But to leave NOW, they would be within their legal rights to penalize you for an early lease termination.

 

[justalayman]

We are not fussy over the extra $5.00 but what gets us mad is we didn't agree to that X amount they are now claiming we owe.

So if we refused to pay that extra amount and just pay the amount we sign too and they refused to accept that,should we consult an attorney then?

Also since this is a illegal contract,do we have the right to break the lease early?

You are going way overboard on this. It is not an illegal contract. You do not have a right to break the lease early or at all due to this situation. The contract you signed is still very much in force.

There is nothing to do unless the landlord actually takes action against you.

 

[FarmerJ]

Mike it appears that it already has become a whizzing war, this property management could have just let this go and been done with it too. I suspect that what ever you do now in the end they may choose to refuse to renew your lease. Honestly its all a two way deal I suspect they may not win either and in court landlords are held to a higher standard since this is the business they are in. I suggest you consider sending to them a certified on paper letter , in the letter remind them that > in court landlords are held to a higher standard since this is the business they are in< that they risk looking really bad if they try to pass off a un initialed change on the lease the way they attempted with you. ID say you may well be best off including in this same letter that it is now your notice that you will not renew the lease with them and you will move by the end of current lease. Keep copy of letter with your certified rcpt. Plan for moving with the use of a storage unit so your current unit is easier to clean, take exit pics of how clean you leave it from A to Z and print them w date on them as if you were preparing for a dispute in small claims court.