contract-law residential-lease
Is a text offering to cancel a lease binding?
<p>If you are having an on-going issue for more than a year and your landlord sends a text stating</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>If you want to break the lease, you can forfeit your deposit and move out by the end of the month</p>
</blockquote>

<p>is it binding?</p>

<p>Would it still be binding if you chose to break the lease and move out the following month when the same problem persists?</p>

<p>This sounds like a settlement offer. At a minimum it would have to be accepted by the tenant before it was binding. Until it is accepted it could be withdrawn at any time.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>Would it still be binding if you chose to break the lease and move out
  the following month when the same problem persists?</p>
</blockquote>

<p>At first glance it seems a bit stretched, but only you know the full contents of the landlord's message. </p>

<p>The key issue is whether "<em>end of the month</em>" in that message can reasonably be interpreted as "end of the month <em>in which</em> you intend to move out". If so, the doctrine of <em><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra_proferentem" rel="nofollow noreferrer">contra proferentem</a></em> would apply and favor your position, since you are not the draftsman of the condition that you and the landlord <em>agreed upon</em> (provided that you expressed your agreement).</p>

<p>Obviously the most straight-forward, most certain option is to inquire of the landlord about the validity of this condition in the following month. There are at least two arguments to support your intent: (1) Moving out by the end of the following month results in the breaking of the lease being <em>less premature</em>; and (2) the landlord would have longer time (namely, one additional month) to find a new tenant.</p>
