When a tenant signs a fixed term lease, they are providing a commitment to remain in the property for the full term. This provides the landlord a degree of stability and security, knowing that the weekly rental income can be counted on for the duration of the agreed period.
Sometimes however, a tenant may need or wish to break the lease early. While this is possible to do, there are usually costs involved for the tenant as well as the otherwise unanticipated time and effort to put the property to market, and run open inspections to find a replacement tenant.
A tenant wishing to break their lease should provide as much notice as possible in writing of their decision to leave. This allows maximum time for the landlord and agent to consider and plan the actions they will take as a result.
This may include the landlord considering whether they will continue to rent the property as is, plan for renovations earlier than expected, or even move back in themselves as well as putting the property straight back on the market.
A lease will often include details of a break lease fee breakdown. The break lease fee is a penalty the tenant agrees to pay if they move out before the end of the fixed term. In QLD, it includes the one weeks reletting cost as well as advertising costs. Additionally, the tenant is required to pay rent up to the day before the new lease starts or the end of the fixed term, whichever comes first.
Tenants must remember that if more money is owed than remains in the bond, their name/s may be listed on a national tenancy database making it difficult to rent elsewhere throughout Australia. In addition, real estate agents typically obtain rental references from a tenant's previous agent when assessing potential applicants for a property. Skipping out on unpaid money is a bad idea!
Further information on breaking lease early can be found on the RTA website.