My apt lease is 'until the 10 day of Aug 2008. Do I have until midnight tonight?

Factual Questions
1

I’m in the process of packing and moving and took out my lease to make sure I have everything covered. My lease states

“This agreement forr lease made this 18 day of Aug 2007. The Lessor agrees to lease to the tenants from the 18day of Aug 2007 until the 10 day or Aug 2008.”

So, does this wording mean that I need to be out by midnight tonight or tomorrow at midnight?

I know I should ask my landlord but hes a slumlord, a jerk, and nearly impossible to get in touch with.

I acknowledge that you are not lawyers nor are you my lawyer yadda yadda :slight_smile:

Thanks!!

2

I don’t necessarily know all that much about the legal side of leases, but that wording suggests to me that you would have to be out by midnight tonight.

3

Probably inclusive, I would think. Can’t be certain without knowing more about the circumstances and the language of the lease.

4

As a practical matter, though, he wouldn’t be able to get an eviction against you for overstaying one day (if, in fact, you did)

I think that any court or jury would laugh at him if he tried to sue you for one day’s rent, or other related expense for him, when the terms are ambiguous and he has yet to contact you to make sure you are out by midnight tonight…

5

And, also as a practical manner, it looks like the lease is intended to give a week’s worth of slop for just this sort of thing.

6

Yes, you generally have a couple of days leeway. Don’t push it.

7

Then again if the new tenant with a legal lease and a key shows up, expect the cops. I’m betting on the new tenants in this case.

8

FWIW, I was told that, in Ontario, you had the entire last day to move out on. That’s why our leases were always something like May 1- Apr 30, so that the next lease could start up on May 1st, and we did have until midnight of the 30th to get out.

If other tenants show up, and your lease says “Aug 10” and theirs says “Aug 10”, then whoever wrote the leases was irresponsible and left it ambiguous, and even if cops are called by the new tenants, I would think that there isn’t much they can do other than tell you to work with each other to get your stuff out and the new people’s stuff in.

9

It’s a civil matter, not a criminal matter.

10

IANAL, IANAA (I am not an American :smiley: ), but my lease specifically says July 1 to June 30 and is a year lease. So, at least in my case, it is inclusive.

11

IANAL, but every place I’ve lived the cops can’t just show up and tell you to get out of your house.

Florida has some of the most landlord friendly laws in the country, but it would still take about 30 days from your missed rent payment until the sheriff comes to evict you. An argument over one day is purely a legal exercise as if you stayed that day and it was determined that you weren’t entitled to stay, there is no way that the courts would hear the arguments in that one day time frame…

12

Who wrote the lease? Ambiguity usually goes against the drafter.