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Ratings. Guidance. The Right Lawyer.
WA State Commercial Landlord Tenant Laws
Redmond, WA
Viewed 45 times.
Posted 3 months ago in Landlord / Tenant
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Thank you for reading my question. I've leased an office room in an executive suite for the past 3 years. I currently hv a lease agreement for 1 1/2 years. It was signed during summer 2008 before the economy downturn. Our biz has been tremenduosly affected by the economy. I discovered that the lanlord has leased out the similar or bigger office room to new tenants 40- 50% below the lease that I've paid. Phone & internet was charged 50% less than the old tenant. I tried to talk to the landlord to ask for adjustment for my lease due to decreased volume of biz from my end. They did not want to make any changes until the end of the lease. Is this lawful to charge tenant such a big diff in lease amount with similar room & service? How can I be treated fairly in this case?
Answers (1)
Thuong-Tri Nguyen
This attorney is licensed in Washington.
Posted 3 months ago.
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Suppose the situation were reversed. That is, the economy were great and the landlord were able to lease space for 50% more than what he is charging you. Would you be willing to pay the landlord more than what is specified in your lease because new tenants are paying more?
The answer to whether the landlord is required to adjust your rent amount is likely in your written agreement. You should review your agreement to see what you agreed to. You can also check whether statutory procedures are followed in the signing of your lease. A lease lasting longer than a year generally must follow certain statutory procedures to be enforceable. The procedures include having the signatures notarized. Unless the difference in the price charged is due to discrimination based on bases declared to be unlawful (such as race, gender), it would not be unlawful for a landlord to charge different tenants differently, especially if the difference appears to be due to the economy. |
