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Hi, I am a landlord of a office building in Southern California. I bought this property in Agust, 2011 and signed a leaseback agreement with the Seller. Seller leased back two units for one year (8/9/2011 -8/8/2012). Seller used Suite A and subleased Suite B to Subtenant. From last December, Seller only paid partial rent for Suite A and stop the payment from March, 2012. Also, the subtenant stopped the payment from May, 2012. On Tuesday, June 26, 2012, the subtenant gave me the cashier check to cover his two months (May and June) delay rent to avoid the lock out time (Approximately on early July). The subtenant said he can not trust the tenant (Seller) will pass his payment on to me. So, he has decided to pay me the rent directly. My management company told me I could not deposit the cashier check and should return the cashier check to the Subtenant. Because, I did not have a contract with the Subtenant. But on leaseback agreement, there is a statement said "the Landlord can collect the rent from the subtenant". The management company said the tenant (Seller) could suit the Landlord and the Subtenant, if I deposited the cashier check. They ignored what already said on the leaseback agreement. My question is "CAN I DEPOSIT THE CASHIER CHECK WITHOUT THE TENANT'S APPROVAL?" according to my leaseback agreement. I have filed UD case against the Tenant. We are waiting for the lock out time. But, the subtenant requested me to release him when he gave me the cashier check. What should I do ??
Optional Information: State/Country relating to question: California Already Tried: None
Hello,If the leaseback agreement states that you can a subtenant's rent directly, then you can -- but if there is no provision in the agreement describing the conditions upon which you can collect rent directly, then there could be a dispute over whether or not you actually had the right to do so.On balance, I doubt that a court would find you in breach of contract, given that the tenant is not paying rent. So, while you could be sued, I don't know what theory the tenant would use to hold you in default.I think you have the high ground here.Note: If you are looking for specific statutes or case law to support your position, you won't find it. Your situation falls within the scope of general contract and real property law. There isn't any absolutely definitive statute that supports or opposes your legal position or that of the tenant. Hope this helps. NOTICE: My goal here is to entertain while educating the public about the law. I hope my answer is useful and informative to you. During our conversation, the website may ask you to rate my answer. If you rate my answer lower than the middle rating, then the website retains your entire payment, and I receive nothing. It is entirely your choice as to how you rate my answer. However, because your payment to me is in the nature of a donation/gift, rather than as compensation for any services rendered, you are entitled to know how your rating affects the final distribution of your donation. If you need to contact me again, please put my user id at the beginning of your question ("To Socrateaser"), and the system will send me an alert. Please Click the following link for IMPORTANT LEGAL INFORMATION. Thanks and best wishes!
The leaseback agreement states:
Cut and dry. You can collect the rent. The language expressly makes you the direct lessor of the sublessor's interest, and the lessee/tenant is simply acting as your agent in subleasing the property.Hope this helps. NOTICE: My goal here is to entertain while educating the public about the law. I hope my answer is useful and informative to you. During our conversation, the website may ask you to rate my answer. If you rate my answer lower than the middle rating, then the website retains your entire payment, and I receive nothing. It is entirely your choice as to how you rate my answer. However, because your payment to me is in the nature of a donation/gift, rather than as compensation for any services rendered, you are entitled to know how your rating affects the final distribution of your donation. If you need to contact me again, please put my user id at the beginning of your question ("To Socrateaser"), and the system will send me an alert. Please Click the following link for IMPORTANT LEGAL INFORMATION. Thanks and best wishes!
Experience: Attorney and Real Estate broker -- Retired (mostly)