Wondering how to break a lease in MN? If a tenant breaks a lease agreement, they need good reason. Lease termination in Minnesota isn't often easy. You may even be seeking legal advice or need to go to small claims court, depending on how complex the lease termination is. If you're breaking a lease Minnesota has rules, and you want to reduce the total remaining rent so you can get to your other financial obligations.
Common reasons why tenants break leases early in Minnesota include active military duty, an early termination clause in the lease, an uninhabitable unit, domestic violence, landlord harassment, and violation of the terms of the agreement by the landlord (like rent increase mid-lease). How to break a lease in MN legally can be difficult.
However, if you’re breaking a lease in Minnesota illegally, you expose yourself to penalty fees and other possible legal issues. Sometimes, if you give proper notice, Minnesota landlords will work with you to find a new tenant before your lease expires. This guide will cover the nine legal lease termination reasons so you won’t have to worry about penalties after you move out. To avoid fees, you’ll need to know how to legally break a lease in Minnesota. This is how to break a lease in MN.
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When learning how to break a lease in MN, the terms of a Minnesota rental agreement are stated in the lease, which can be a signed, written document or an oral agreement. A written lease must include the lease start and end dates. Leases can be either month-to-month or for a definite period, typically 6 months or a year. Both parties’ rights and responsibilities should be included in the agreement for breaking a lease in Minnesota.
As a tenant, you have certain rights in Minnesota that may contribute to how to break a lease in MN. These rights include:
In Minnesota, your responsibilities include:
If you break a lease in Minnesota, you may be responsible for paying the remaining balance on your lease, a break lease Minnesota fee, and any other charges as defined in the lease. Your landlord may keep your security deposit to cover some or all of the amount you owe and sue you for the rest.
It is important to know how to break a lease in MN for valid reasons. Valid reasons for breaking a lease early in Minnesota include domestic violence, uninhabitable living conditions, and active military duty. Invalid reasons for breaking a lease in Minnesota include buying a home, changing jobs, and health problems that require you to relocate.
When breaking a lease MN, you can break your lease without penalty if one of several conditions is met:
How to break a lease in MN becomes easy if you’re active military duty. If you are starting active military duty, you may avoid penalties for terminating a lease early. You must prove you signed the lease before entering duty and that you will stay deployed for at least 90 days. You should send your landlord a notice letter with an attached copy of the deployment orders or the commanding officer's orders. The earliest time for breaking lease MN is 30 days after the next rent period starts.
Adding an early termination clause in your lease may allow you to break the lease in exchange for a penalty fee, commonly equal to one remaining rent or two months of outstanding rent due. You typically have to give 30 to 60 days notice.
Under Minnesota law, if you are a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or sexual abuse, you may break your lease without penalty. In Minnesota, acts of domestic violence that qualify for breaking a lease in Minnesota include:
If you're trying to prove domestic violence in Minnesota, you have to show the landlord one of the following:
Minnesota has an implied covenant of habitability for every residential lease in the state. This means the landlord has the legal duty to keep the rented home or apartment in habitable condition, including:
You must notify the landlord in writing of the uninhabitable conditions of rental property. According to Minnesota law, the landlord has 14 days to repair the problem.
Minnesota law says a tenant’s estate can terminate a lease early, without penalty, if a tenant dies before the expiration of a lease in Minnesota. To qualify, the tenant who signed the lease must have been the sole occupant and over 18. If minors were living with the deceased tenant, the landlord may make arrangements with their new legal guardians.
The deceased’s estate may provide the landlord with a written notice with a death certificate, or the landlord may request the tenant’s death certificate from the Minnesota Department of Health. A representative of the estate must provide the landlord with written notice within 2 months of death, remove the tenant’s property from the premises, and sign an inventory of the removed property to break the lease.
In Minnesota, you can break a fixed term lease early without penalty if it contains unenforceable clauses or provisions that deem it voidable. Common examples are if the lease was signed under duress, the tenant is a minor, or the unit is illegal. A minor in Minnesota is someone under the age of 18. An illegal unit may have too-low ceilings, no address, no dedicated gas/electric meter, or improper electrical systems. Lease terms that try to avoid a legal responsibility or deny you a legal right, such as heating to at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit during the colder months, can be voidable.
If a landlord repeatedly violates your privacy, breaking a lease in MN could be easier than you thought. Landlord harassment in Minnesota includes the following reasonable efforts on the part of the residential tenant and the landlord:
You may prove landlord harassment by keeping written records of any harassment or taking photos if possible. You must file a complaint with the Minnesota District Court for lease termination due to landlord harassment. This will allow you to legally break a lease without paying rent.
You may be able to break a lease agreement early, without penalty, due to a mental or physical disability in Minnesota. However, you must give the landlord an opportunity to make the lease agreement and rental unit work for you and your disability. You must be unable to function in a regular rental property and need specialized care to qualify. Not all physical and mental disabilities meet the requirements for terminating a rental lease early.
The Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act allow tenants with disabilities to request reasonable accommodations, such as modifications, changes, or exceptions made to policies, practices, or services to ensure they have an equal opportunity to enjoy their living space during their lease term. If not met, breaking a lease in Minnesota is acceptable. Common physical and mental diseases and conditions include:
If your disability is obvious and apparent, you don’t need to show proof. If it isn’t obvious and apparent, you may have to provide documentation from a medical professional or a reliable third party to prove your disability is valid to qualify for a lease termination.
Need to know how to break a lease in MN if someone is retaliating? If your landlord retaliates against you, you may be able to take legal action to break your lease early and do a lease termination without further rent payments. Typical actions that show a landlord fails you as a tenant include:
Common acts of landlord retaliation after you learn how to break a lease in MN include:
You will need court permission in Minnesota to terminate a lease for landlord harassment by filing a complaint or petition with the Minnesota District Court.
Wondering how to break a lease in MN if you don’t have a reason? If you do have a legal justification to terminate your lease early but don’t want to have the legal right to pay rent back, here are some things you can do that might limit your exposure to penalties:
Hopefully now you’ve learned how to break a lease in MN! If you're breaking a lease in Minnesota, it's time to relocate to your new home or move apartments! And when doing that, you need the best Minnesota movers to get you there. The Move Crew is here to help you get to your next location quickly. Give us a call at 612-361-6787 or fill out our form online to get a free quote.
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