When a tenant wants to break a lease: options and the duty to mitigate
When a tenant wants out early, you can hold them to the lease, agree a buyout, or re-let the unit and charge them the gap, but many states require you to try to re-rent instead of letting rent pile up. New York and Washington impose that duty to mitigate; Florida gives you a list of choices, including an early termination fee of up to two months' rent if the tenant signed a separate addendum. Servicemembers with qualifying orders can end a lease under federal law, without an early termination charge.
Your options, side by side
| Option | How it works | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Agreed early termination | You and the tenant sign an agreement: a move-out date, a fee or rent through a date, and the deposit handled as usual | Get it in writing and signed by every tenant on the lease |
| Re-let and charge the gap | You market the unit; the tenant owes rent until a new tenant starts, plus any shortfall the law allows | Your marketing effort must be real and recorded |
| Sublet or assignment | The tenant finds a replacement you approve under your normal criteria | Screen the replacement exactly like any applicant |
| Hold to the lease | Rent stays due as it comes due | Not allowed to sit idle in states with a mitigation duty |
The duty to mitigate, by state
Rules differ a lot. Three examples:
- New York: when a tenant leaves in violation of the lease, the landlord must, in good faith and according to the landlord's resources and abilities, take reasonable and customary steps to rent the unit at fair market value or the lease rent, whichever is lower. A new lease ends the old one and offsets the damages, the landlord carries the burden of proof, and a lease clause waiving the duty is void (RPL 227-e).
- Washington: a tenant who defaults and abandons the unit owes rent for the abandonment, and the landlord must make a reasonable effort to mitigate by trying to re-rent once they learn of it. For a month-to-month tenancy, the tenant owes rent for 30 days (RCW 59.18.310).
- Florida: after surrender or abandonment, the landlord may end the lease and the tenant's liability; retake the unit for the tenant's account and charge the difference after re-letting in good faith; stand by and collect rent as it comes due; or charge liquidated damages or an early termination fee of no more than two months' rent, with no more than 60 days' notice, if the tenant agreed in a separate signed addendum (Fla. Stat. 83.595).
Other states fall somewhere between. Read your own statute, and treat the examples here as patterns, not as your rule.
Worked example: re-letting versus a fee
Example a made-up tenant pays $1,600 a month and leaves with five months left, or $8,000 of rent. In a mitigation state, the owner lists the unit the same week and signs a new tenant at $1,550 starting one month later. The first tenant may owe the empty month ($1,600) plus the $50 monthly shortfall for the four remaining months ($200), a total of $1,800, rather than $8,000. Under a Florida early termination addendum, the same tenant might instead pay a fee of up to two months' rent, $3,200, with up to 60 days' notice, and the owner keeps any rent from re-letting.
Exactly what you may charge (advertising costs, a re-letting fee, the shortfall) depends on your lease and your state. Ask your attorney before you send a bill.
Military orders: the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act
Under 50 U.S.C. 3955, a tenant may end a residential lease after entering military service, and a servicemember may end one after receiving orders for a permanent change of station or a deployment of at least 90 days. The tenant must deliver written notice with a copy of the orders, by hand, carrier, mail with return receipt, or a qualifying electronic method.
- For a lease with monthly rent, termination takes effect 30 days after the next rent due date following the notice.
- Rent is prorated to that date, and you may not charge an early termination fee, though charges for excess wear and other lease obligations remain.
- Rent paid in advance for the period after termination must be refunded within 30 days.
Steps when the notice arrives
- Reply in writing, confirming the date they plan to leave.
- Check whether the SCRA or an early termination right under your state law applies.
- Offer the options your lease and law allow, in writing.
- List the unit right away and keep a record of every ad, showing and application.
- Do the move-out inspection against the move-in report and return the deposit on your state's deadline.
- Send a final, itemized statement of what is owed or refunded.
Tracking it in DoorKeeping
A broken lease ends in a final balance: rent owed, any agreed fee, and the deposit. DoorKeeping keeps each property's ledger and deposits held in its own books, so you can ask your AI app for the tenant's balance at any time, and any refund or charge waits for your one-tap approval. When you find the next tenant, the new lease goes out for e-signature from DoorKeeping. DoorKeeping gives no legal advice.
Sources
- New York Real Property Law 227-e, duty to mitigate damages, read Oct 29, 2026
- Washington RCW 59.18.310, default in rent and abandonment, read Oct 29, 2026
- Florida Statutes 83.595, choice of remedies upon breach or early termination, read Oct 29, 2026
- Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. 3955 (Cornell LII), read Oct 29, 2026
Questions
- Does a landlord have to re-rent when a tenant breaks a lease?
- In many states, yes. New York and Washington require reasonable efforts to re-rent; Florida lets the landlord choose among several remedies. Check your state.
- Can I charge an early termination fee?
- Only if your lease and state allow it. Florida allows a fee of up to two months' rent if the tenant signed a separate addendum agreeing to it.
- Can a military tenant break a lease without paying a fee?
- Yes, if they qualify under the SCRA, for example with permanent change of station orders. They give written notice with the orders, and no early termination charge is allowed.