Being sued by landlord

[dorothy5]

I have a co-worker who is being sued by the landlord for backing out of a one year lease agreement a month prior to his move in date. He'd already paid his deposit of $380, had never received keys, and when he approached the landlord telling him he needed to stay where he was to help his mother, she told him a contract is a contract and that he is obligated to pay every month until the place was rented out. He tried to contact her several times to discuss but she wouldn't return his calls or texts. Yesterday he was served papers and is being sued by this landlord for $1,500. Not to mention the fact that the apartment in question has since been rented out. Does my friend have any rights in this? Should he retain a tenant lawyer? Thanks for your help!

 

[mightymoose]

If the apartment has already been rented out then he is off the hook.
If anything he was responsible for a prorated amount of rent until the date a new occupant took over. If that happened prior to his move-in date then he is golden. If it did not happen before then, he needs to make the landlord prove that a reasonable effort was made to rent the apartment as soon as possible and minimize any loss. If the landlord did not do that then he is still in the clear.

Also, if he backed out more than 30 days prior to the move in date then he might still be safe since the landlord had ample time to get a new tenant.

Your friend should countersue for the value of the deposit.