Hello there. Here is our situation:
My boyfriend and I signed a 1 year lease to live at our current address
in Orange County, California through a real estate/rental management
company. Basically, the lease says that our landlord is supposed to
provide us with 2 parking permits so that we can park in the designated
parking locations where we live. He provided us with 1 permit
originally and said we could pick up the other one later. About 5
months after the lease was signed, our car was towed even though we had
parked in the designated parking spots. We found out that the permit
he gave us expired and we were informed that we should have received a
new permit from him, but we never did. We called the rental management
company about the $180 towing fee and a new parking permit. They said
they would contact the landlord regarding this issue. It has been
about 1 week since this occurred and basically all they've said is that
they have not been able to come in contact with the landlord yet.
In our lease, it stipulates that this service should be provided. It
also says that "The breach of any of the covenants or terms of this
Agreement shall be deemed to be a material and total breach of this
entire agreement ad shall give rise to all rights of termination."
Does this mean that we are no longer obligated to the duration of the
lease?
Yes, unless there is some language in the lease requiring written notice of
breach, or a cure period, or some sort of dispute resolution, or some other
limitation on your right to cancel. Don't take my "Yes" as a legal advice
sort of "Yes" until I have seen the entire contract and all of the
correspondence.
It may be that you have waived the materiality of the second permit by not
mentioning the breach for 5 months. But even as to the second permit, look
for a clause saying something like "no provision of this lease may be waived
orally or by conduct or in any way other than by a signed writing." That
would mean that you have not waived the materiality of the breach concerning
the second permit. And I don't see any wiggle room regarding the expired
permit. That's clearly a breach, and the lease makes it a material one.
The difference between material and minor is that the non-breaching party
has the right to cancel the contract, if it is done promptly.
McGyver
