your apartment just isn't working out anymore:

Something has changed. New job forcing a move, roommate from hell, ceiling collapse, bedbugs, boyfriend threatening you, change of station orders, unresponsive landlord or just not getting what you paid for. There are so many reasons an apartment that made sense months ago doesn't fit your current situation.

Perhaps you tried to work it out with your landlord. Maybe you even tried to negotiate a buy-out or sublease. Instead of working with you, your landlord made threats and proposed "solutions" that would cost you tens of thousands of dollars. In fact, it seems like he wants turn your difficult situation into a bonus for him by charging both you and a replacement tenant rent.

We help tenants deal with difficult situations.

professional lease termination:

Let's face it, some landlords just don't respect tenants - they think that we still live in the age of lords and serfs. They make the rules and you will follow them. If your landlord is acting unreasonably, it's time to hire a lawyer to terminate your lease and get you into a housing situation that fits your current needs. Many leases can be broken for a month of rent, and even the most tricky cases aren't hopeless. Rules that protect tenants are convoluted and technical - fortunately, we have the experience to help you stand up to your landlord.

Schedule Strategy Session$295

how it works

schedule a strategy session

Every lease termination starts with a Strategy Session where we spend up to an hour on the phone with you. This allows us to get to know you, learn about your situation, evaluate your risk, and answer your questions without you committing to a full engagement and termination. Click here to get started.

complete your strategy session

The strategy session consists of a review of your important documents (lease, evidence of bad conditions, communications from your landlord, ect.), a discussion of your goals and concerns, an evaluation of your legal options and the risks associated with those options, and a question and answer session. At the end of the call, we will discuss whether it makes sense to move on to a full termination. If not, you leave with the peace of mind of knowing where you stand.

Lease termination

Once the Strategy Session is complete, you will understand your risk profile and the cost of termination. With that in mind, if you determine that termination makes sense, we will put the termination plan into action, terminate your lease, and instruct you on proper move-out procedures. Your landlord will be instructed to deal with us and, in all likelihood, you will have heard the last of him.

enjoy your new home

We take pride in our ability to improve the lives of so many tenants in a world where most attorneys are only interested in working with landlords. Whether you were leaving your old apartment due to awful conditions, an abusive spouse, or just to take your dream job in a new and exciting city, our termination process helps tenants make the move that is right for them.

who we serve

Though every tenant can benefit from a Strategy Session, our services make more sense for some than others

More likely to benefit

Tenants that must move
Tenants with two or more months left
Tenants in Cook County
Tenants willing to stand up to their landlord

Less likely to benefit

Tenants with very low rent ($500 or less)
Tenants with less than two months left
Tenants outside of Cook County
Tenants that are extremely risk averse

What makes a strong case for termination?

In over a decade of representing tenants, we have seen just about every situation imaginable. Though any lease can be terminated, the risk of repercussions varies based on the specific facts of an individual's case.

Tenants that must move

The most obvious case for termination is a situation where staying in the unit is not an option. This commonly occurs where there is a mandatory job transfer, where the tenant bought a new house, or where the tenant already signed a lease on a new apartment. In these situations, it always makes sense to terminate, regardless of risk.

Tenants living with bad conditions

Within Cook County, almost all tenants can terminate a lease if there is a significant conditions problem with the unit and the landlord does not fix it after a technically correct notice. If the conditions problem is very bad (think flooding, lack of essential services ect.) the tenant can often terminate with little or no notice.

Outside of Cook County, the conditions problem has to be really significant since other counties are not as protective of tenants.

Tenants living with abusive people

Living with an abuser is a horrible situation and Illinois recognizes this. If a tenant is in an active abuse situation, a termination is possible so long as the many technicalities of Illinois law are satisfied.

Tenants with horrible landlords

I could write a book on the many ways a landlord can be horrible and there are few things worse than having one of your basic needs controlled by a psychopath. If your landlord is walking into your unit whenever they like, retaliating when you upset them, conducting unauthorized renovations, propositioning you for sex (yep, it happens) or otherwise making your life hell, it may be time to move.

who we are

The team at Brabender Law + CTM Legal Group has served thousands of tenants.

Brabender law llc

J. Andrew Brabender

ctm legal group

William Tasch