Q: Are we entitled to pro-rated rent if the next renter's lease overlaps with ours?
We had been renting a one-br condo in Virginia up until last fall when we purchased a home and moved out. We were aware that we still had a few months left in the lease and were the responsible tenants until the lease ran out on January 31. We also understand that in VA, the landlord only has to "make a good faith attempt" to sell or rent the place while we are still the leaseholders.
In an email recently, the landlord mentioned offhand "the new tenants", so I was like, wait a second - why the heck am I paying for a full month's rent for January if you already got new renters in there? It's only February 2, and it's possible that the new renters just started yesterday. But if the new lease started anytime in January, aren't we entitled to prorated rent for that month?
A: It seems to me that there are several hypothetical facts that need to be determined to be factual or not. If you can determine whether there is a new tenant in the premises, you should not be required to pay the full amount of the rent for the month. Once that is determined, you will have certainty as to how you need to proceed otherwise it may be very risky to speculate about the facts.
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