Good morning.

I am looking for advice on how to proceed with my landlord.

We are needing to cancel our lease earlier than the expiration due to financial constraints. I did call my landlord yesterday to explain our situation and he said he is sorry to hear that but we will be charged a penalty. See below, the section of our lease the landlord is referring to. 

I will give written notice today after recieving correct legal advice. We plan to move out 1 September 2024 (more than the required 20-business-day notice period). We will also continue to pay for rent and utility usage up to then. Is he still allowed to charge us a penalty or keep our deposit as penalty?

Another note, the Landlord/Agent was storing their possessions in our garage (which we were entitled to as part of our rental) which made the garage space unavailable for us to use for 2 months of our lease, even though I did communicate from the onset of our lease that we wanted the goods removed from the garage. We did not have a reduction in the monthly rent charged to us for this storage space used.

"Section 14 - Cancellation of the lease

14.1 The Tenant may choose to cancel this lease at any time, but must give the Landlord at least 20 (twenty) business days' written notice.

14.2 Should the Tenant cancel the Lease before the Lease Period expires, under the Consumer Protection Act, the Landlord may charge a reasonable cancellation fee which may be based on:

-The amount still owing under the remainder of the Lease Agreement,

-The value of the Lease up until the point of termination,

-The duration initially agreed upon,

-The length of notice of cancellation,

-The potential of the landlord to find another tentant,

-Credit checks for any new potential tenants,

-Advertising costs to find a new tenant"

Your assistance will be greatly appreciated.

Warm regards, Amy