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Imagine renting a retail space where you have a store. What would you do if your landlord drastically increased your rent, and you could no longer afford the space? Would you find some sort of way to cover the rent, or would you want to break your lease and rent space somewhere else?

In this story, one book seller is in that situation, and he wants to break his lease. The problem is that the landlord won’t let him.

Thankfully, his real estate agent has a friend who can help him, and with a little research, he finds a mistake on the lease that he can use to force the landlord to change his mind.

Keep reading for the whole story.

Ok Mr lawyer i will!

So i work as a specialist property valuer. A few years ago a real estate agent friend approached me on behalf of his client. His client was a book seller who operated a specialist book shop on the 7th floor of a City building. A one man band small business. Nice bloke.

Unfortunately nice bloke had decided to renew his lease for 5 years and signed the new lease without getting advice.

His new building owner enacted the market rent review clause and jacked up his rent by something like 50%. Tells nice bloke, your new rent for the next 5 years is x.

Nice bloke is distraught! He cant afford it. So he asks nicely to rescind the lease and he will move elsewhere. Estate agent friend has found a cheaper space for him.

Uh-oh!

Denied by building owner. Building owner says he will also sue if he breaks the lease.

So the agents asks me to review the case.

I look through the case. Nice bloke is stuffed. The lease is lock tight and they are justified in jacking up the rent. I think our only hope is to appeal to the mercy of the building owners lawyer.

So i call him and ask for release, penalty free, for my client.

He decides to take the lawyer up on reading the lease.

Mr Lawyer says “stiff cheddar, you need to comply with the law, try reading the lease”. A real arrogant jerk.

Cue malicious compliance “ok, i will”.

I read through the lease and note that all references to the Retail Leases Act have been crossed out. Fair enough. The act only applies to retail tenancies IF they are below the 3rd floor of a building. Nice bloke is on level 7. Act should not apply.

But hold up imma gonna check that.

This is good news for the book seller!

I call the small business commission who administer the act, and they advise that, if you retail a good (like books) it doesn’t matter what floor you are on the act applies. You could be on the friggen roof if you want. The level 3 provision only applies if you retail a service. This means the building owner has breached the act and failed to comply with the law (theres certain things they have to provide before signing a lease and timing they have to follow).

A breach is no small thing. I get a ruling from the commission.

I call for mediation with Mr Lawyer.

Present are Mr Lawyer, building owner and their agent and nice bloke and me.

Let’s try that again!

I again plead for a penalty free release.

No dice and they threaten to sue.

I gently slide the ruling accross the table to Mr Lawyer.

Me:”Ok. Well as per your suggestion i read the lease. We have a ruling that proves the act applies to the lease. Your clients failed to comply with the act and committed a statutory offense “

Now, the tables have turned.

Lawyer: (reads ruling)….”um ok. We will grant you a penalty free release”

Me: “oh. We dont need that. We enact our right under the act to terminate the lease, penalty free, and to seek damages for the landlords breach of their statutory obligations and ill be reporting the breach to the commission ”

Lawyer: “no need for all that, lets just tear up the lease”

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Me: “sorry, that wouldn’t be complying with the law would it?”

Daring someone to read the lease can really backfire, but it sounds like it worked out well for OP and his client.

Let’s see what Reddit had to say.

I’m sure it was very satisfying.

This is good advice.

Another person applauds him.

This person is confused.

That does sound like a weird law, but the weirdness of the law is not the point of the story. The point of the story is that it’s important to read the lease carefully. Not only that, but if a section is crossed out or you’re told a certain law does or does not apply, don’t just take the landlord’s word for it. Do you own research.

You can’t defend yourself if you don’t know what you’re talking about.

The book seller was really lucky this guy was able to help him out.

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Author

Jayne Elliott

Jayne Elliott | Contributing Writer, Life & Drama

Jayne Elliott is a contributing writer and editor for TwistedSifter specializing in human interest stories, internet culture, and family dynamics. With over 12 years of editorial experience in digital publishing, Jayne excels at analyzing complex online communities and transforming viral social debates into thoughtful, highly engaging narratives.

Rather than simply aggregating internet drama, Jayne brings a sharp, empathetic editorial eye to everyday dilemmas. She has a unique talent for unpacking the nuances of pop culture and online conflicts, providing readers with relatable, well-researched commentary.

Based in California, Jayne spends her free time outside the newsroom exploring theme parks with her family or beach-combing along the coast.

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