Georgia Lease Agreements Explained
Georgia, like many states, requires a contract to be in place prior to renting real property. This agreement, sometimes referred to as a lease and other times as a rental agreement, sets the terms and conditions for the tenancy. In Georgia, leases are typically for a period of one year but can be month to month or even year to year. The contents of a lease can vary widely but all of them should set forth the parties to the lease, the length of the lease, the rent due, when the rent is due, when it is due and where it is to be paid, the late fees to be incurred if not timely paid, and the obligations of the parties during the term of the lease .
The lease may also contain additional details such the obligation of the landlord to maintain the premises, when the tenant is responsible for maintenance, and any restrictions the tenant may have with regard to the property. It can spell out what happens when one of the parties fails to comply with the terms of the lease and what happens when a dispute arises. Because leases are contracts, both parties are bound by the agreement and should know the parameters before signing.
Legal Grounds to Terminate a Lease
Georgia law provides several legal grounds for lease termination. Nationally, even a lease entered into for a period longer than one year is enforceable for only one year if the written lease was not signed in front of a Notary Public. (O.C.G.A. 44-2-2(a)). In Georgia, for example, a lease for longer than one year must be in writing; leases for a year or less may be oral or written. (O.C.G.A. 44-7-3). Verbal leases for a year or less are enforceable in Georgia, but if a dispute arises between the landlord and tenant, it is difficult to prove the terms of the lease. Lease agreements that are renegotiated or modified after the original agreement has been made, whether orally or in writing, do not need to be in writing. The landlord – tenant relationship may be modified, extended or renewed by an oral or written agreement, as long as the new agreement explicitly states which terms are being modified or terminated (O.C.G.A. 44-7-4).
Another important point to make is that both a tenant and a landlord may terminate a lease agreement if the associated property is lost, destroyed, or condemned (O.C.G.A. 44-7-37). A tenant may break a lease agreement without being liable for extra rent if the dwelling unit becomes uninhabitable or unsafe due to damages or destruction from a casualty loss (O.C.G.A. 44-7-20). The tenant must vacate the dwelling unit within 30 days of the damages or destruction. The tenant is entitled to recover all rent that has already been paid for any period after the damages or destruction. But, if the property contains more than four apartments, the landlord has 30 days to either provide alternative housing or repair the property in order to avoid termination (O.C.G.A. 44-7-20).
Statutory Grounds: Military Service
Many renters are now aware that Georgia law provides several legal reasons a tenant can break a lease and move out early. One of those reasons is active military service. If a tenant receives permanent change of station orders or orders to deploy overseas, the Service Members Civil Relief Act may apply.
The Service Members Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C.S. Appx. § 3951) tolls lease obligations for tenants on active military orders. It also extends rights to tenants when they receive permanent change of station orders, orders to deploy for 90 days or more, orders to report for active duty, or orders to relocate for pre-deployment, post-deployment, or during emergency mobilization. However, the Service Members Civil Relief Act does not apply to a member of the National Guard who is ordered to any drill period required by state law such as a weekend drill or annual training. A tenant can be entitled to protection if the landlord is a person or business who owns or operates residence dwelling units for the occupancy of tenants or a person or business authorized to receive rent on behalf of other persons or businesses who own or operate residential dwelling units for the occupancy of tenants. 50 U.S.C.S. Appx. § 3953(a)(1).
After receiving an assignment that qualifies for protection under the Service Members Civil Relief Act, the service member has a deadline to provide some notification to the landlord. A service member may deliver a written notice or provide some verbal notification within 30 days of receiving the orders. For landlords with more than one person authorized to receive rent, all persons able to receive rental payments must receive notice. Within 30 days of receiving notice, the service member must provide a copy of qualifying military orders. The landlord may also request a copy of the military organization’s most recent military leave and earnings statement for verification. 50 U.S.C.S. Appx. § 3953(a)(2)-(5).
The Service Members Civil Relief Act provides protection whether the tenant signed the lease before receipt of qualifying military orders or after. 50 U.S.C.S. Appx. § 3956(b)(1). A service member does not have the right to terminate a lease if the tenant or spouse signed it before receiving qualifying orders or confirming their spouse’s qualifying orders. 50 U.S.C.S. Appx. § 3956(b)(2). By signing a lease with the knowledge that they would soon enter active military service, service members risk losing some of the rights provided by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.
Under the federal law, the service member does not pay rent after the last day of the month in which timely notice is given. The lease ends 30 days after the last day of the month in which notice is given or when the military orders no longer entitle the tenant to protections under the Service Members Civil Relief Act, whichever occurs earlier. 50 U.S.C.S. Appx. § 3954 and 3956.
Habitable Conditions: Dangerous and Unhealthy Environment
While the caveat emptor generally applies to the rental of apartment units, and Georgia tenants have a high duty to determine if a unit is right for them when choosing it, there are issues with the unit or the complex in which it is located that can be considered "habitability" problems which are due to no fault of the tenant. If an issue is a habitability problem, then the tenant may break the lease without being liable to the landlord for vacating without notice, rent or lease termination fees.
While Georgia law does not include a statutory definition of "unsafe living conditions," if a tenant brings your a claim and wins thousands of dollars in damages, it will definitely be obvious what "unsafe" means. Unsafe conditions would be a breach of the warranty of habitability in a lease with the landlord. If unsafe conditions exist after the lease is signed, then the tenant may break the lease without any penalty from the landlord. This could be a result of repair delays on the part of an apartment’s management or construction defects that the landlord knew about. Sometimes outside forces create unsafe conditions for the tenants or residents, and the landlord takes no action to cure them. Federal laws require a landlord to make reasonable accommodations to tenants who have disabilities, but if the landlord creates obstacles for those tenants, the lease may be able to be broken. Even being late on a rent payment, without other defenses, is not typically going to result in a tenant being able to break the lease.
Issues with unit construction in an apartment, such as water leakage or mold problems, could be a result of a defect in the way that the unit is built. If this is the case, the tenant has a much better chance of being able to break the lease. If there are security issues in the unit or apartment, such as open entries to the apartment under guard, tenants may have a chance to break the lease.
Landlords often try to bring leases that are created for long times and in complicated ways to court. Courts view lease claims with the same scrutiny that they treat business contracts, but they also take a good look at the situation of both the plaintiff and the defendant. Georgia courts like to put people back into the position they were in before the lease frauds and other breaches occurred.
Landlord Violating Tenant’s Privacy Rights
A landlord’s unlawful invasion of tenants’ privacy, such as by entering the unit illegally without notice, can be a legal reason for breaking a lease in Georgia. Georgia statutory law expressly says that a landlord may not enter the rental unit without permission, except in emergencies such as the threat of fire or flooding, with the tenant’s permission, or upon giving reasonable advanced notice (24 hours is considered reasonable in most circumstances). The statute allows the eviction of the landlord, as well as money damages against the landlord, in favor of the tenant if the tenant is harmed by the landlord’s unlawful entry into the rental unit.
For example, if the building (or a unit in the building) is physically attacked by a violent tenant or stranger, and management manager has reason to believe that the attack threatens the residents’ safety, the law will allow the manager to enter the rental unit without a warrant or the tenant’s permission to protect the safety of the tenant even if the manager has no permission from the tenant or even 24/48-hour notice to enter. If the manager does so without good cause, however, the tenant may have a claim for damages against the manager for harm caused by the manager’s unlawful entry into the tenant’s rental unit.
Domestic Violence Victims
A tenant who is the victim of domestic violence may terminate a lease and avoid a lease breakage fee, if certain steps are followed: The tenant must provide a copy of the applicable order for protection or other documentation as made available by O.C.G.A. 44-7-55. Additionally, the tenant must provide the landlord with 30 days’ advance written notice of termination. Given what is required to prove domestic violence and obtain an order for protection , it would be rare for a given order to not set forth the lease provisions to be followed. A tenant does not have to pay for any rent for more than the 30 days stating in the termination notice provided. However, the tenant can not use this process more than one time in a 12 month period.
Illness and Medical Grounds
In Georgia, there may be circumstances when a tenant’s medical issues or illness could warrant the breaking of a lease without penalty. If a physician provides documentation that the rental unit is simply not safe for entry, under current health standards, this letter could potentially break the lease. This could be the case, for example, if the unit has been flooded, mold has grown, or certain pests are present (without treatment as recommended). A doctor’s note specifying the health hazards with sufficient detail may allow a tenant to legally terminate a lease.
On the other hand, if a tenant has suddenly been diagnosed with a serious health condition that demands immediate treatment or an intensive regimen of medication requiring complete rest, this may not be enough to justify lease termination. In such circumstances, a tenant would need a physician’s note defining the treatment or medicine required, a recommendation for relocation (if any), and documentation supporting why remaining in the current residence presents a danger to the patient’s health. Additional documentation may be necessary, such as a housing inspection report, if the health condition in question is related to a dangerous element within the unit such as wood rot or black mold.
Breaking a Lease Legally
Given the above legal reasons to break common in Georgia lease provisions, the following procedure should be followed by a tenant who desires to legally terminate a lease. If the lease has no clause to the contrary, the tenant can legally break a lease by exercising his or her legal right to serve a notice terminating the lease 30 days from the date of the notice to the landlord. We have attached our recommended form notice in the next section.
A tenant may also follow the following procedure:
(i) Provide written notice to the landlord of the following:
a) Facts constituting the breach
b) A date by which the landlord must remedy the breach of the lease (this can be done by way of reference to a termination provision in the lease)
c) That legal action may be commenced against the landlord if the breach of the lease is not remedied within a certain number of days
(ii) Then, on or after the end of the period, inform the landlord or his agent of his or her intention to vacate and claim damages.
(iii) Provide written notice to the landlord of the tenant’s intent to vacate which includes the age or number of minor children living in the rental unit.
Consequences of Breaking a Lease
Breaking a lease in Georgia without legal grounds can have significant implications. In addition to forfeiting the good faith of the landlord and breaking a legally binding agreement, a tenant may be subject to legal and financial repercussions.
When a lease is broken without legal justification, a landlord may hold the tenant liable for any losses that result from the lease termination. This may include loss of rental income while the property is vacant or expenses incurred by the landlord in re-renting the property. For example, if a tenant breaks a lease six months into a year-long term for a sole reason that they just don’t want to live in that place anymore, the landlord may be able to sue the tenant for the six months’ rent it takes to find a new tenant to occupy the property.
Georgia law allows landlords to mitigate their damages in this manner, requiring the tenant to cover only the "actual damage" that results from the lease termination. Georgia law does not require a landlord to attempt to find a new tenant for the unit before a tenant is held responsible for the lost rent.
In an example situation a young couple leases a rental property for a term of one year. Five months into the lease, one of the tenants receives a promotion that requires relocating to another state. The couple notifies the landlord of their need to vacate the property. The landlord declines to allow them out of the lease and instead requires them to continue making rent payments each month for the remainder of the lease term. As they have no legal basis for breaking the lease, the tenants remain liable for the remaining rent due under the lease agreement.
The landlord may also hold the tenant responsible for any expenses he or she incurs in attempting to re-rent the unit. There are no hard and fast laws or maximum limits in Georgia with respect to the amount a landlord can seek in order to make themselves whole. A landlord may claim it costs them $2,000 to market the property and show it to prospective tenants before issuing a new lease. However, this figure may sound exorbitant to a tenant who can rent a similar property by listing it on Craigslist in one day for free.
If, in renewing the lease with this tenant, the landlord had raised the rent by $200 per month, the loss to the landlord is approximately $2,400 in rental income. Even a pro-rata accounting would mean the tenants owe the landlord just $1,200. However, when the landlord incurs $2,000 worth of damages to show the property to new tenants, it seems unlikely that the resulting liability will match the measurable financial loss. A court will ultimately determine how much to award based on the evidence presented.
In this example, if the landlord is able to find a new tenant to occupy the unit immediately after the prior tenants leave, the financial cost to the prior tenants would be quite minimal at just $200. If, however, the landlord makes an aggressive search for a new tenant and is unable to find one for three months, the prior tenants’ liability could easily be $600 or $800.
From the standpoint of the landlord, it is important that he or she can prove he or she made every good faith effort to limit the damage of the tenants’ breaking the lease. It is in the best interests of both parties to document attempts to re-rent the property so that there is a clear paper trail evidencing the negotiation process and timeframes involved.
The best way to avoid this scenario is to renew the lease with the couple at the end of the one-year term and allow them to rent the same property virtually indefinitely. As long as they pay their rent and continue to maintain the property in the manner agreed upon in the original lease, the landlord will be satisfied and both parties should be happy with this arrangement.
Obtaining Legal Assistance
The process of breaking a lease can often be complex and filled with exceptions or complex language, which can cause serious issues if not handled properly. For this reason , seeking the advice of a lawyer knowledgeable in Georgia landlord/tenant law is the best course of action. Laws are constantly changing and only a licensed attorney is able to give formal legal advice.
If you are not already working with an attorney, the Georgia Bar Lawyer Referral Service (404) 527-8777 will provide a one-hour office consultation with a Georgia lawyer for $50.00.
