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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
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    3

    Default How Much Can Your Landlord Increase Your Rent

    My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: Georgia

    My lease ended September 30, 2014. I've lived in this apartment over a decade. We received a notice on the door in August informing us we could reduce the amount our rent would increase at the end of the lease by signing a new lease early. This notice was generic, not addressed personally to me, and did not specify what the rent would be without a lease, or if we signed a lease after September 30th. It did state that month-to-month would include an extra $100 added to the rent.

    We're house hunting, so we were putting off signing a new lease. We received notice two days ago that as we haven't signed a new lease, our rent is going to be increased by $50, plus another $100 for being on a month-to-month. If I treat the notice from August as "official" notice, which I doubt it is, then the highest I could have assumed the rent would be raised is by $25, plus $100.

    My questions:

    Does a generic notice like the one from August constitute proper legal notice of an increase in rent, since it did not include my name or specific amounts?

    Since my lease ended, does my landlord even have the obligation to give me the otherwise required 60-day notice that my rent would be increasing?

    If I sign another lease, my rent will stay at the current rate. I don't want to do this because the apartment complex is now owned by a company, rather than a family, and the lease terms are particularly bad. For instance, one of the provisions in the lease is that we are not allowed to make negative comments about them on the Internet.

    Do I have any legal standing to pay my rent at my former rate, along with a 30 day notice that I am moving out? Can they require the extra $150 from me, legally? Also, since it is now the 5th of October, will I have to pay all of November's rent since 30 days from now is November 5th? (The 6th by the time I actually give notice.) Can I prorate it? If I am required to pay for all of November, which rental rate would apply?

    Thanks for any help.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: End of Lease, Huge Increase in Rent, Want to Leave--Georgia

    1. I do not believe the ambiguous notice would be adequate as a notice of a rent increas

    2. I do not believe it matters since your rent was based on a lease that is expiring. From what I have read the 60 days notice is applicable only to month to month tenancies.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Posts
    3

    Default Re: End of Lease, Huge Increase in Rent, Want to Leave--Georgia

    So I'm probably obligated to pay the extra rent? Seems like they could charge me anything they want. If that's the case, I'd think that I could just leave tomorrow and only owe them for 1 week.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: End of Lease, Huge Increase in Rent, Want to Leave--Georgia

    My apologies. Apparently my fatigue overwhelmed me last night. After re-reading your question I realized the lease already expired at the end of September so the question is: have you paid rent for October and if so, was it the same as you paid in September? If so, that established you as a month to month tenent so the 60 day notice requirement applies. The first month you could be required to pay an increasedmrent would be january since your due date for each November and December would be less than the obligatory 60 days. Since you are month to month they couldn't chamge the amount in the middle of the month either.

    So, if they gave you a notice with a specific notice of the amount of increase (I was thinking maybe in the aug notice they said if you went month to month it would be some specific amount) they cannot increase your rent until they provide proper notice

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    98,846

    Default Re: End of Lease, Huge Increase in Rent, Want to Leave--Georgia

    Some aspects of this matter may be covered in the lease, so it's important to actually review the lease to see what it says about the end of the tenancy and the carry-over of lease terms to a subsequent month-to-month tenancy.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Posts
    3

    Default Re: End of Lease, Huge Increase in Rent, Want to Leave--Georgia

    My rent is due by October 5. I put it in the drop box, so they have received it today. I'm supposed to go over there today and sign the lease--or not. The manager said she's not supposed to accept the rent without a lease, but since I'd be there on Monday, she would. I don't know if she officially cashed it or not. I don't want to be unethical if she accepted the rent on the assumption I was going there later today to sign the lease. She knew I would be deciding over the weekend.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Mr. Knowitall, I'd have to check the lease, but it was a pretty simple lease. I don't think it mentions what happens after the lease is up at all.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Another question--if she doesn't accept the rent, do we have to move out immediately? I thought when you occupy a house, you always have 30 days at least to vacate.

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