I am a sub landlord and want to break my sublease agreement, how do I?

[Julybrat]

My husband is a Foreign service agent. We received orders to move overseas on 8/31/13- 11months into our rental agreement. The landlord agreed to allow a sublease agreement to be made with their approval of the sub-tenant. The sublease was made for a 2yr time frame & states that he is responsible to abide by the terms and conditions of the original lease (which was provided with the sublease) as well as the terms of the sublease agreement. In the sublease it states that "the utilities will by left in our name AS LONG AS they were paid on time and in full each month". He did not paid them for 3 months so we had to pay them online overseas, we then asked him to change them over to his name. He agreed & did so, but now is saying that I broke the sub-agreement because I had him take the lights out of our name. Also, in the master lease it states that no changes shall be made to the premises with out written consent and approval of the landlord. He went and re-painted my freshly painted (and approved by landlord) house- completely new colors. I spoke to the landlord about it and they said they did not give verbal or written permission. I brought this up to him, he completely flipped out & was extremely irate & disrespectful. I spoke to the landlords about this as well, & they are completely supportive of me reclaiming the property. They said I have to send him a certified letter giving him at least 30 days notice, that I am returning early from my assignment & reclaiming the property. Is that all I have to do? I have heard of a "Foreign Service Clause" that can oust a subtenant because of an early return from an overseas assignment, but because he broke the terms of the lease and sublease, can that be the sole grounds for the early termination of the sublease?

 

[army judge]

If you want him out early, you'll have to evict him using the court system in the State of Virginia.
I don't know the terms of your lease, nor do I know the terms of the sublease.
You can ask him to leave by writing a letter, and he can choose ignore it, refuse to leave, or simply say, SORRY, NO THANKS.

I suggest you consult a lawyer, not your landlord.

The clause about early returns from an assignment might be in your lease, but I doubt it's in his.
If it were, your sub-tenant would have to assert it, unless you put it in his lease for your benefit.
Even if you did, he could choose to ignore it, then you'd still have to evict him.
An eviction takes time (8-12 weeks), costs a little money to initiate, and must be done exactly as the law demands.
Otherwise, one misstep, you start all over.

I don't think it'll be as easy as you're being told. Why? You've antagonized him. People don't usually respond well, when antagonized, intimidated, or agitated. People DO tend to respond better when compromise, negotiation, and respect are shown. No one has to do something because you ask them to do it. So, try negotiating, asking, even begging, try a little tenderness.