Break your Lease: An app that helps tenants break their lease

Just read this: App launched helping tenants break a lease with no implications

A new app that helps tenants find a replacement if they want to break their lease. Are there any property managers out there who are aware of this and would be prepared to deal with this? I mean a good property manger would be screening their applicants. But a tenant finding their own replacement?

Note: I have tried to find the app through Google Play but haven't been able to find it yet but suspect it will appear once the app ramps up. But you can access the app through their official website Break Your Lease

Thoughts. Discussion.

 

I believe tenants are already entitled to forward replacements for consideration, and they would be screened in much the same way as the original tenant. The PM or LL cannot unreasonably decline a prospective replacement but that applies regardless whether the application came via this app or an advertisement on re.com.au (duty to mitigate loss).

 

^^ that.

Tenant would need to be break costs still though as it’s not a lease transfer. A whole new lease requires all the other work such as the final inspection, condition report, screening etc. which isn’t free.

May help limit the out of pocket expenses for the outgoing tenant by giving another avenue to advertise the property, but won’t be a magic wand to stop them paying fees for breaching their contract.

 

Thank you for the responses that is reassuring to know. I think I may have been drawn in by the headline of 'breaking a lease with no implications'

But it is generally just finding a new tenant to sign a brand new lease with you. I thought of it as a transfer so if you had 6 months left of your lease then the 6 months would be transferred to someone else. I know friends who have taken over leases for others in this sort of way.

 

I suspect it's possible that this very topic will come up on this forum in the near future, as a tenant will break their lease using a lead they found on this app, and the agent will insist on a new lease (and break fees, though those won't be so applicable outside NSW as the effective losses to the landlord will be close enough to zero to not be worth even calculating) while the tenant will insist on a lease transfer (which is usually a token fee to cover the administrative charge, and not with all agencies), and probably end up going to tribunal.

 

Lease transfers are nearly non-existent in Queensland, are they more common in other states?