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Is a text message valid as a lease contract between landlord and tenant?
Anonymous5 views2 answers
A few months ago when our year lease was up our landlord text messaged me asking if I'd like to stay another year with no rent increase. I said yes and my landlord replied that she would come by soon with a new rental agreement to sign. She never did. A few months go by, we bought our first home. I called to inform my landlord that since we never signed a new lease we would be leaving in 30 days. She says the prior text message between us is a valid contract binding us to a year lease. Any thoughts on this? Thank you in advance!
Most likely, yes, that is enough to form a contract. An offer was made and you accepted. If you had said "yes, but only if we sign a new lease," then you'd be in a better position. But it sounds like you didn't put any conditions on your acceptance, so you are bound to an additional year.
Ryan Lynn JensenEstate Planning AttorneySalt Lake City, UT ·
As you would expect, attorneys could debate and differ on these sets of facts. Given that reality, your best bet might be to try to reach some sort of "middle ground" with your landlord, perhaps offering to pay rent for a few more months, but not the full year. Otherwise, you might end up paying much more than your annual rent in legal fees trying to fight and win. Best of luck to you!
