Is my daughter's boyfriend bound to the terms of their oral agreement to pay half of utilities?
Full Question:
My daughter and her boyfriend moved in together. They agreed to split the rent and utilities. Both names are on the lease for the apartment. She put the cable in her name and he put the utilities in his name with the agreement that she would pay him the difference between the cable and utilities. He decided after 6 weeks he did not want to live in Tallahassee and returned to Fort Myers where they had both lived previously. He has agreed to pay his half of the rent for the remainder of their six month lease but is refusing to pay utilites and cable. My question is - isn't he legally responsible for his half of everything?
06/20/2007 |
Category: Contracts ยป Oral |
State: Florida |
#6549
Answer:
Generally, co-tenants are independently liable to the landlord for failure to comply with the lease agreement, including rent obligations. This may be spelled out in a lease agreement as both tenants being jointly and severally liable for the rent. If the lease agreement does not require the parties to pay the landlord any amounts for utilities and/or cable, your daughter will have to seek to enforce the agreement (regarding payment for utilities and cable) with her boyfriend as she would any other contract.