My wife has not signed lease can I break lease?

I signed a lease on Thursday when I entered the house on Friday the landlord did not clean and did not paint. There is mold or mildew above doors and windows. Fans are not working properly etc... On the lease the lessor is me and my wife. I have signed but my wife has not. Can I break this lease?

This is in Alabama

Have you taken possession of the property?? If yes, then why?

You should have not accepted it on this condition. If you did move in, you need to send a written letter to the landlord/ State you want to rescind your contract if the items are not fixed within so many days. (3-5 days is reasonable). If the items are not fixed within those days, you state that you plan on vacating the property and demand a full refund less the days the unit was occupied.

Also, bring up the specific issues about mold and health issues and the fact that your wife did not sign the lease yet.

The contract could be voided since your wife did not sign the lease (alabama is not community property state). But , if you qualify for the apartment alone in your name, you could be liable.

The goal is to make the landlord want to "let you out of the lease" to avoid court. If you mention the facts in writing and give him a set date to fix it, he has a choice to fix the problem or let you out.

Don't expect to get out of the deal next month... do it now.

No you cannot break the lease! You signed the contract. It is possible that the landlord might choose to not honor the lease if your wife refuses to sign, but you should check with him on that.

Also check your state's landlord/tenant law in regard to whether a landlord is required to paint between tenants (sometimes this is a health code issue) and whether he is required to clean the place. I'd recommend taking pictures of exactly what you found when you entered, in case you have to use them later.

In general a constructive eviction can only happen if the place is uninhabitable, and the condition you describe, while unpleasant, does not make it uninhabitable.

If the lease is in both your names, and the wife hasn't signed, then it's not a ratified contract, - so there is no contract. I believe you can "break" it since there isn't a lease. Do this in writing ASAP.

You may want to see a lawyer to verify the laws in your state.

If one of you can create an indebtedness for both, then your signature is sufficient to bind you.

If the landlord could declare your lease null and void for lack of that signature, then its absence would release you.

In the Province of Quebec it is important to know whether a couple is 'Separate as to property' or 'Joint as to property', so that one knows whether they are committed by one signature.

The person signing is in this province always committed, but the other is not if they are 'separate as to property'. So some couples keep all significant assets in the wife's name while the husband incurs all debts in his name.

This is what you are wanting to do... which could only work if first your wife owns all your assets and secondly you are deemed separate as to property.

In any case you could be sued, required to honour the contract. So forget the question of your wife's signature, and go about enforcing the contract to have the place made safe and habitable.