Full question:
My tenant vacated my rental house without paying her December 2008 rent. She did not advise me of her leaving and breaking the contract she had until March 2009. She was to give a two months notice if she was going to renew the lease. She did not return the key of the place or gave notification of anything, she does not even return the calls, or hang up when she hears my voice on the cell. What should I do next to get the back rent and the months she owes according to the contract? Can I get in the house with another key and can I advertise the place for rent? Thank you for your answer.
- Category: Landlord Tenant
- Subcategory: Lease Termination
- Date:
- State: Louisiana
Answer:
The courts generally will treat the abandonment of a tenancy as a breach of contract. Therefore, under contract law principles, the landlord is obligated to mitigate (reduce) damages by reletting the property. If the landlord does not do this, the landlord will only be entitled to the amount that should have been obtained through an attempt to mitigate. The landlord not only can, but must re-enter the property, and must make reasonable attempt to relet it, such as advertising the property and showing it to prospective tenants. Any money that is recovered through that process will serve to lessen the damages the breaching tenant has to pay.
If a tenant breaches the lease by failing to pay rent, it is possible to bring a breach of contract action to collect the money owed. In some cases, courts costs and attorney fees may also be awarded.
The following is a LA statute:
9:3259. Unpaid rent; attorney fees
A. Whenever any lessee of any apartment building, house, motel, hotel,
or other such dwelling fails to pay rent that has become due and
delinquent, within twenty days after delivery of written demand therefor
made in accordance with the provisions of this Section, correctly setting
forth the amount of rent due and owing, the lessee shall be liable for
reasonable attorney fees for the prosecution and collection of such claim
when judgment on the claim is rendered in favor of the claimant.
B. Delivery of written demand for purposes of this Section may be
accomplished by mailing the written demand by certified mail to the last
known address of the lessee, by personal delivery to the lessee or by
tacking the written demand on the door of the leased premises.
C. The provisions of this Section shall apply to oral leases only.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.
