Global Voice Column

Point: Problems that may occur when an apartment is subleased.

Advice: Let’s say your friend sublets an apartment to you but you begin to think about leaving because of a worsening environment. You paid your friend the guarantor money instead of paying directly to the landlord, so in this kind of situation what legal rights do you have?

The person renting the apartment, known as the lessee, must have the consent of the landlord to sublet an apartment. When the lessee subleased the agreement without first getting permission, he or she could have their lease agreement voided. You may think that since you have lived in the apartment for many months that the person who sublet the apartment to you obtained permission from the landlord to do so. However, this may not be true, and it is the subletter who is responsible for paying the rent payment so make sure that you are aware of the kind of agreement made regarding how rent is paid.

The lease agreement also applies to any third person’s property, as well. You should consult the subletting agreement for any issues regarding canceling the lease, or having rent payments returned.  It’s also unlikely that the security deposit you paid up front will be returned if you have the kind of subletting agreement where you are required to pay compensation for a fixed period of time.