Roomates...

[JonNlsn]

Jurisdiction

Arizona

I am on a lease with another party for a house. My roommate has allowed a new girlfriend to move in. At first this arrangement was only supposed to last "days" but it has been over a month now and I'm not getting the impression that she is leaving anytime soon. She has some issues and I'm not comfortable continuing to live there with her in the house. Is this grounds to be able to break the lease, what are my options for recourse? We signed a two year lease which will not expire till November 2019. He's a decent guy and my goal isn't to harm him financially, I just want out. Obviously if there is a consequence that he face as a result of his choices I guess that is what it is...help!

 

[zddoodah]

Is this grounds to be able to break the lease

No. The only thing that could conceivably allow you to break the lease would be a breach by your landlord. Your and your roommate's conduct vis-a-vis each other has nothing to do with the lease. I'm going to assume you and your roommate don't have any sort of written roommate agreement.

what are my options for recourse?

This isn't really a legal issue. You need to discuss the situation with your roommate. Maybe you ask him to get rid of his girlfriend. Maybe you offer to help him find a new roommate to take your place. Maybe you'll have to suck it up and deal with it. In the future, if your situation is such that you need to have a roommate, sign at least a basic agreement that governs your obligations vis-a-vis each other. I'm sure you can find some samples by googling.

 

[JonNlsn]

No. The only thing that could conceivably allow you to break the lease would be a breach by your landlord. Your and your roommate's conduct vis-a-vis each other has nothing to do with the lease. I'm going to assume you and your roommate don't have any sort of written roommate agreement.



This isn't really a legal issue. You need to discuss the situation with your roommate. Maybe you ask him to get rid of his girlfriend. Maybe you offer to help him find a new roommate to take your place. Maybe you'll have to suck it up and deal with it. In the future, if your situation is such that you need to have a roommate, sign at least a basic agreement that governs your obligations vis-a-vis each other. I'm sure you can find some samples by googling.

Thank you for your feedback! I kind of figured this was going to be the case. Sadly we do not have a roomate agreement, unfortunately it seems I went into the agreement without covering my bases. I don't ever see myself having a roomate in the future. I think what I've learned is that peace of mind is worth the extra expense. Thanks again for the feedback.