Subletting or Assigning a Rental Agreement

Unless it is prohibited in the lease, a lessee may sublease or assign his/her interest in the property to another.

Sublease

A sublease is an arrangement where a lessee rents his/her leasehold interest to another, called the sublessee. The sublessee is liable to the original lessee. The sublessor is liable for payment of rent to the owner under the original lease, however.

Assignment

Unlike a sublease, a lessee can give up all of their rights to use or possess the property through assignment. An assignment is the transfer of the entire leasehold estate to a new person, called an assignee. The original lessee steps out of primary responsibility for the lease and the new assignee becomes responsible to the lessor for all the terms of the original lease.

An assignment ends the lessee's relationship with the property and the assignee in effect stands in the shoes of the original lessee.

Do you have questions regarding subletting or assigning your rental? If so, please contact Aziz Legal by phone at (408) 203-4627 or email us at abid@azizlegal.com.

This article is merely informational and is not intended to be used as legal advice. Use of any information from this article is for general information only and does not represent personal legal or tax advice, either express or implied. Readers are encouraged to consult Aziz Legal, or another attorney, for any specific legal matters.