Legal Question: "Addendum" to Lease 6 months later?

[SMS]

Also, I'll post relevant parts of the lease when I get back to my computer.

I'd send them a certified letter with a copy of your current valid lease. Explain that you do not agree with the addendum and you intend to keep paying your rent, occupying the property under the terms of the original lease, and that they can either:

A: Honor the original lease, as signed.
B: Break the current lease with no penalty and a full refund of your deposit.

 

[71buickfreak]

Call the local news stations. They will back off real quick.

 

[HMFIC]

I went to the new office today and spoke with the manager. First of all, new owners and new management, both the same company.

Get ready for some laughs, the woman I talked to needs to be fired.

She told me that I didn't have a choice regarding the addendum, that it was retroactively effective over a week ago. I told her I wasn't notified of the changes a week ago, and I hadn't signed anything. She talked down to me, said it didn't matter if I was notified or not because the new ownership has the right to make changes. I said if they had the right to make changes, then I had the right to leave without penalty. She said I didn't because I signed a lease. I showed her the section of the lease that specifically states "No amendments or addendum without the signature of the tenant" and asked why my lease was binding to me but not the new company. She said the new owner "got put in jail by the FDIC for stocks and bonds" and stuff, so this was a special circumstance. I asked her when the FDIC stopped insuring banks and became a law enforcement agency.

Overall, the ***** just talked down to me like the 21 year old that I am. I'm not taking it. They apparently went around and convinced people in the complex to sign without reading the addendum. They're coercing and deceiving people.

Good for you standing up to them and making your rights and their contractual obligation know. From everything I understand, they don't appear to have a leg to stand on and are just trying to bully people.

If you're really wanting out of the lease, keep pressing that you'll just go away if they'll refund your deposits, etc.. get it in writing from them and be prepared to take them to small claims court if they don't honor it.

OH... how long was your lease for and how much longer do you have left on it?

 

[Cougar]

Read Title 15 Chapter 5 of the Oklahoma State Statutes

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Title 15 Chapter 5 Section 237 - Alteration of Written Contract

"A contract in writing may be altered by a contract in writing, or by an executed oral agreement, and not otherwise."
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My understanding is as follows ( I am not an attorney)

If we assume you:
A: Have a written contract (lease)
B: Have not altered that legal contract in writing or by executed oral agreement

Then that contract (lease) remains valid in the form it was signed, and can't be changed at the whim of your apartment manager. Once the stated binding time period on your contract (lease) is over, the manager can require you to sign the amended lease, or vacate the property.

 

[beast1989]

Cut your rent checks with the usual amount and don't change a thing you are doing. I think you need to get your tape recorder ready (the one on the iPhone works well for me) and have that conversation again. A good time to have it would be if/when they start charging your roommates for pets. If you decide to get that train wreck on tape you can say things like "so you are telling me that you are altering our contractual agreements without consent of the tenant?" and she will answer in the affirmative. Then you can say I don't understand how you guys can do this to the tenants and ask her to explain how they believe they have that right. Having their illegal policies straight on tape straight from the horses mouth will help you out immensely. I'm blabbering so I digress.

It's time to start preparing for the worst. Record any contact from now on...

 

[Lurkerinthewoods]

I would definitely pay the same rent that's in your lease and not a dime more. Paying the new amount might constitute agreeing to the new terms. Good luck, and if you decide to leave early, even if they tell you it's okay, keep a close eye on your credit report for about 6 months to a year.

 

[David2012]

Sorry I didn't notice that your location is Fayetteville, AR. Get in touch with a large television station that is viewed in your area. They all have consumer watch dog reporters.

On your checks, when you pay your rent write 'Paid In Full' for that month it covers in the note section and make a copy before submitting it. Some jurisdictions hold that if a person cashes a check so marked, that they are agreeing that the debt is indeed paid in full. Otherwise they should contest it. You make the copy because I've known of instances where the landlord made a alteration to the original check and forged the Tennant's initials or signature to it.

You might also put a bug or two in the ears of your local District Attorney, the State Attorney General and the federal prosecutors office in your area... if the owner is already having legal issues... they might be interested in learning if he has other on-going legal problems. Sounds almost like a form of extortion to me... you either pay up the extra cash or the management will use that as a excuse to toss you out on your butt and keep your security deposit for breaking the lease. It is a matter of your credit & reputation. If you want to move into another apartment or get a bank loan in the future... having a bad record of having not kept a lease agreement and being evicted might hurt your credit rating sometime down the road.

Or at least mention to the woman that you spoke with of your intentions to contact law enforcement officials and organize your neighbors [even the ones who already unwittingly signed the new lease amendment]... she might see a bright white light shinning down from Heaven and get a change in attitude in a hurry.

 

[Glocktogo]

I'd send them a certified letter with a copy of your current valid lease. Explain that you do not agree with the addendum and you intend to keep paying your rent, occupying the property under the terms of the original lease, and that they can either:

A: Honor the original lease, as signed.
B: Break the current lease with no penalty and a full refund of your deposit.

Tell em to pound sand, you ain't signing anything and your rent checks will stay the same for the duration of the lease. As SMS stated, send them a certified letter with the relevant, non-negotiable terms of the contract and your unequivocable refusal to renegotiate that lease. Tell them you'll be monitoring your credit and that if they put a flag on it, you'll be filing a lawsuit for libel.

Finally, demand that the manager provide a name and address for the CEO or legal department of the management company for a certified copy of said letter.

 

[ewheeley]

Got my headphones (with in-line microphone) ready to go and "ask for clarification" tomorrow afternoon. Will let you know how it goes.

 

[beast1989]

Got my headphones (with in-line microphone) ready to go and "ask for clarification" tomorrow afternoon. Will let you know how it goes.

Test that setup before hand to make sure those headphones work as you remembered them too. It would suck to go through that again and come out empty handed. Also check to see if when the screen locks that it continues to record until you press stop. She will probably be about 5ft away from you so test for clarity at that range.

So many people are tied to their phones now days that it wouldn't look out of the ordinary to be holding it w/o heaphones and not using it. Just don't let her see the screen being active of course.

The guys on the board have a lot of good points that you could bring to their attention. Keep us updated and good luck.