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QUESTION: My landlord wants me to sign a lease including a break fee of up to six weeks rent. There is a high demand where I live and I can’t imagine a unit not being rented out for more than one or two weeks.
But I’m also worried that this raises my liability if I happen to need to move out in the middle of the 12-month contract.
So what is the general consensus on break fees? Are they a good idea or not? –
Cleid, via Forum
ANSWER: The agreed break fee means if you leave your rented home early, then you don’t have to pay all the rent while the place is empty, plus the cost of readvertising it.
Break fees are fixed by law at a maximum of six weeks rent if you move out during the first six months, and four weeks rent if you move during the second six months.
The downside is that if you agree on the break fee and the landlord rents the place out five minutes after you’ve left, you still have to pay the full whack.
Ask yourself this – how many other people tried to rent the place when you applied?
More on this HERE.
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