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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2016
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    2

    Default Are You Obligated to Refund Rent After Kicking Out Your Roommates

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

    Got a couple to rent an apartment my wife and I are already living in. My wife and I are both on the yearly lease. They moved in November 1, 2016. We told them one of them has to get on the lease.

    Even with us pushing them to get someone on the lease, they never finished the process. This combined with several other grievances left us feeling like we needed them to leave.

    We asked them to move out, no big issues. But they never gave us an idea of when they were moving out until the night of. They want to be reimbursed for the rest of the month. As well as get their deposit back.

    As we didn't have much notice of when they were going to leave (so we couldn't find a temporary renter to cover the last week of the month) are we legally obligated to pay them back as we gave them to the end of the month to move out?

    Also, the deposit, are we required to give it back immediately? Or can we wait til we find new renters. As its super cold and not a great season to find someone to take the room, we might end up paying the entire rent for at least a month because they didn't fulfil the requirement we made of getting on the lease. Can we use their deposit to cover a month of no roommates?

    Thanks in advance.
    M

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Default Re: Are You Obligated to Refund Rent After Kicking Out Your Roommates

    Quote Quoting Xur
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    We asked them to move out, no big issues. But they never gave us an idea of when they were moving out until the night of.
    Did you say, "We want you to move out, ASAP", or did you say, "We would like you to move out, but you can stay as long as you want and you need to give us thirty days notice before you actually leave?" After all, if you demand that somebody move out and they move out, it's difficult to blame them for the short notice.
    Quote Quoting Xur
    Also, the deposit, are we required to give it back immediately?
    From what you have told us, you are their landlords and they are your subtenants, so you are obligated to follow the state's landlord tenant laws for the security deposit.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2016
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    2

    Default Re: Are You Obligated to Refund Rent After Kicking Out Your Roommates

    We basically had a talk, they asked so should we move out. And we said at this point we think that is best. We didn't really say they had to move out by a certain day. Just said to let me know when they can move out by.

    So even tho we are on the lease, and the landlord doesn't allow subletting, because they never got on the lease they were basically subletting? I guess my question, for the future is...what do you do when looking for roommates ASAP, when the landlord application process takes a while. Obviously you shouldn't let them move in until on the lease, but that leaves us paying extra rent or trying to make the last roommate pay for that extra time.

    So based on us being the landlord, we have 30 days according to MA law to return it. Or to return whatever portion of it is left minus any damage (some carpet staining). Can the lack of a replacement be considered a damage as we didn't tell them to leave by a date and asked for a heads up of when they were leaving?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Default Re: Are You Obligated to Refund Rent After Kicking Out Your Roommates

    At a minimum you implied that you wanted them out at their first opportunity, which is what they did -- in which case, by all appearances, the issue of short notice is on you.

    I am not in a position to fully evaluate your situation, but when you are the only tenant on a lease, you are charging rent that is paid to you, and you charge a security deposit that you hold, you're the landlord and the person from whom you're taking rent is a subtenant. The provisions of your lease with your landlord are irrelevant to that relationship.

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