Leases...Cant find answer in NOLO

[pmac123]

Hi everyone!
My son is going to file for chapter 7 soon. He cant afford an attorney so I said I would help. He had a condo several years ago that was forclosed on. I know there's lots of information about that here so I'm not worried about that. My question is about a lease that doesn't expire till December.
My son lives with his girlfriend and they are expecting a baby in July They have an unbelievable opportunity to live with his sister and her husband til they can get on their feet! My son needs to file but his girlfriend doesn't and they have both signed the lease to their apartment (which is outrageously expensive!) The lease says that if it is broken that they have to pay the rent till the apartment can be rented out to someone new (very clever!) If I understand this correctly they will be evicted(which is ok) and my son would be ok because he filed for chapter 7 but what does it look like for his girlfriend? Her credit isn't super but it's ok and they would like to maintain it. Does anyone have some experience with a situation like this or can anyone direct me to information? NOLO just wasn't spacific enough. Thanks in advance!

[discouraged]

That is a tough one. I know that here they are not very happy with broken leases and I'm pretty sure her credit would take a hit. But, I'll let the experts help you out on this one. I know that when I was looking into buying a house, I made sure it coincided with the end of my lease for that very reason.

The good thing about that is now I feel comfortable in that apartment owner's reference. This is something they may have to think of too. The lease is in place to protect both parties and it is very common for it to state that it will be honored by both parties, including the rent being paid for the duration of the lease, or until they can rent to someone else if the renter wants to leave early. Every apartment I ever rented had this stipulation in the lease.