Lease transfer with only 2 months remaining – landlord refused a potential tenant who wanted 3 months. What are my options?
I'm looking for advice from people who have dealt with lease transfers in Quebec, particularly with large property management companies.
I have a studio in Montreal with a lease ending October 31, 2026. I gave my notice that I would not renew and I'm moving into another apartment at the end of August.
I've been trying for several weeks to find someone to take over my lease. I've advertised on Kijiji and other sites, had hundreds of views, received multiple inquiries and organized several apartment visits. I've also cooperated with my landlord's management company when they arranged their own viewing.
I found one person who was genuinely interested in taking the apartment. The problem was that they wanted to stay for 3 months rather than the 2 months remaining on my lease. I asked the management company whether they would accommodate this, but they refused, explaining that a lease transfer transfers the existing lease and therefore can only run until October 31.
The person ultimately decided not to proceed.
The management company is now telling me that unless I successfully transfer the lease, I remain responsible for the rent until October 31.
I'm continuing to advertise and look for someone, but I'm worried that it will be very difficult to find someone who wants an unfurnished apartment for only two months.
My questions are:
Has anyone successfully transferred a lease with only 1–3 months remaining?
If you found a candidate who wanted to stay slightly longer than the remaining lease, did your landlord ever agree to a new lease/extension with them?
If the landlord refuses a candidate because they want to stay longer than the existing lease, is there anything I should be doing differently?
Has anyone dealt with InterRent specifically in a similar situation?
If I can't find someone, what are my realistic options?
I'm already contacting a Montreal tenants' rights organization and the TAL for advice, so I'm mainly interested in hearing from people who have actually dealt with something similar.
Thanks.