Breaking a Lease Early in California: What Are My Options?

If you leave without a legal reason

1. 1

   If you break your lease and move out early, you may owe the rent you had not paid by then. Your landlord can also ask a court for other money needed to make up for the harm from your broken lease promises.

   Source:

   1. Civ. Code § 1951.2(a), California Legislative Information. Law.
   Tip.

   Read your lease before you decide. Check whether it lets you end it early and what penalty you must pay.

2. 2

   Your landlord can ask a court for the rent for the time after you left, until the court makes its decision. You owe only the part you cannot prove could have been avoided. For example, you leave 3 months early and your rent is $1,000. That is 3 times $1,000, or $3,000. You prove $1,000 of it could have been avoided. You would owe about $2,000.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. Civ. Code § 1951.2(a)(2), California Legislative Information. Law.
   Tip.

   This is only an example to show how the rule works. If it goes to court, a court decides the real amount.

When you can leave early

3. 3

   The law gives your landlord a reasonable time after you tell them to fix a problem that makes your home not fit to live in. The law usually counts 30 days as reasonable. If they do not fix it, you may move out and owe no rent from that day. You cannot use this a third time in any 12-month period.

   Sources:

   1. Civ. Code § 1942(a), California Legislative Information. Law.
   2. California Tenants guide, The abandonment remedy, California Department of Real Estate. A government guide.
   Think before you call an inspector.

   You or a neighbor can ask the city to send a code inspector. Be careful: if the home is in very bad shape, the inspector can condemn it (say no one may live there). Then everyone must move out, you too, sometimes on short notice. Think about where you would go before you call.

   From City of Santa Cruz Planning and Community Development.
4. 4

   To move out over bad conditions, the problems must be serious and directly related to your health and safety. You, your family, your guests or your pets must not have caused them. You must tell your landlord what repairs are needed. You can tell them out loud or in writing.

   Source:

   1. California Tenants guide, The abandonment remedy, California Department of Real Estate. A government guide.
   Tip.

   Write down each problem, every time you contacted your landlord, and the day you moved out.

How to leave

5. 5

   If your landlord does not make the repairs in a reasonable time, tell your landlord in writing why you are moving out. Then move out and return all the keys. Writing is recommended, but the law does not require it.

   Source:

   1. California Tenants guide, The abandonment remedy, California Department of Real Estate. A government guide.
   Tip.

   Keep a copy of every letter you give your landlord, and keep your mail receipt. Save the texts and emails you send your landlord, and any replies.

After you move out

6. 6

   Your landlord can use your deposit for unpaid rent, damage you or your guests caused, and cleaning that returns the home to its move-in level. Normal wear and tear (normal use over time) does not count. Your landlord may charge only what is reasonably necessary. The law gives your landlord 21 days after you move out to send a list of what was kept and return the rest.

   Sources:

   1. Civ. Code § 1950.5(h)(1), California Legislative Information. Law.
   2. Civ. Code § 1950.5(b), California Legislative Information. Law.
   Tip.

   Before you leave, clean the home and take photos of how you left it.

7. 7

   If your landlord says you owe more, a debt collector may call or write to you. The collector must tell you how much, who it is for and how to say it is wrong. You have 30 days after you get that notice to write back. Then the collector must stop trying to get that money until it answers you.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. What information does a debt collector have to give me, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A government guide.
   3. What should I do when a debt collector contacts me, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A government guide.
8. 8

   Your landlord can take money from your pay or benefits only after winning in court. The court must issue a judgment (the court's final decision) that you owe the debt. If you are sued, do not ignore it. You can lose the case if you do not go to court.

   Sources:

   1. Our editorial rules.
   2. Can a debt collector take or garnish my wages, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A government guide.
   Tip.

   If you get court papers, do not ignore them. Go to court, or you can lose the case.

   From Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Special protections

9. 9

   You can end your lease early after domestic violence (as the Family Code defines it). The same goes for sexual assault and human trafficking (both as the Penal Code defines them), and for stalking (as state law defines it). It also covers abuse of an elder or dependent adult (as state law defines it). The victim can be you, someone who lives with you or a close family member.

   Source:

   1. Civ. Code § 1946.7(a), California Legislative Information. Law.
10. 10

    You can also end your lease early after a crime that caused injury or death. The same goes for a crime with a gun or other deadly weapon, or with force or a threat of force. The victim can be you, someone in your household or a close family member.

    Source:

    1. Civ. Code § 1946.7(a), California Legislative Information. Law.
11. 11

    To end your lease for abuse or a crime, give your landlord a written notice. The law gives you 180 days to do it. The days count from the date of a protective order, a written report you made, or the act or crime.

    Source:

    1. Civ. Code § 1946.7(d), California Legislative Information. Law.
12. 12

    To end your lease for abuse or a crime, your notice must be in writing. Attach one paper. It can be a copy of a protective order. It can be a written report from a peace officer (law officer) that you filed a report. It can be papers from a qualified third party who is helping you. It can be other papers that reasonably show it happened.

    Source:

    1. Civ. Code § 1946.7(b), California Legislative Information. Law.
13. 13

    If you end your lease for abuse or violence, you owe rent for no more than 14 days after you give notice. You owe less if the usual notice time or your lease is shorter. You owe nothing more under the lease. If the home is rented to someone else before then, the rent you owe is prorated (divided by the days).

    Source:

    1. Civ. Code § 1946.7(e), California Legislative Information. Law.
14. 14

    Your landlord cannot make you give up your deposit or advance rent because you ended your lease for abuse or violence. You are not treated as having broken the lease.

    Source:

    1. Civ. Code § 1946.7(f), California Legislative Information. Law.