What are my rights as a sublessor?
landlord tenant attorney Pennsylvania Nov 3, 2026
Location: Pennsylvania. I recently had to relocate within the state. When I gave my landlord notice a little over 30 days before my lease renewal for the year, he said since I had emailed in March affirming I didn’t have plans to move, I would not able to cancel my lease renewal. I helped find a sublessor, they background checked and interviewed, & my landlord had me sign as surety. Per the agreement, if my sublessee falls through, I am on the hook for the amount of annual rent minus what the sublessee paid during their stay. The contract states the sublessee must pay a first+final month deposit up front, which seemed fair & assuaged some of my concerns. Three months in, I have discovered that my landlord never collected the deposit, and the sublessee has not paid more than a month’s rent in total. There have been no moves to evict, and the landlord seems to think they can “work something out”. Do I have any rights here? It seems like what’s going to “work this out” is thousands of dollars of my money. I want to honor my contract, but I’m no Rockefeller.
