Leases
Constructive eviction
Conditions the landlord fails to fix that make the premises unusable
Nobody is physically put out. The premises are made unfit — heat left off, water cut, a defect left unrepaired — and the tenant vacates and treats the lease as ended. The tenant must actually leave; staying and complaining is not constructive eviction.
Easily confused with
Actual eviction is the landlord physically excluding the tenant. Constructive eviction is the tenant leaving because the landlord made staying impossible.
How the exam asks about it
Two elements carry it: the landlord’s failure caused the condition, and the tenant left because of it. Drop either one and the answer changes.
Quick check: Constructive eviction
One question. Pick an answer to see the explanation.
Which term is being defined: “Conditions the landlord fails to fix that make the premises unusable”?
Related terms
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