Great residents have to break leases all the time. We comletely get that and most of our owners do as well. We keep them legally in line either way and the process is very clear in NC. This though is one of the most technically complex issues we have to deal with as you often have prorated rent of varying amounts, multiple people making multiple payments and more. The most crucial point is that you contracted to pay the owner a set amount when you signed the lease (a literal dollar amount can be calculated from those terms) and that is what the owner must receive. So we replace you with someone willing to take over the rest of the balance due, similar to a loan assumption. If they won't pay full price for the balance due (meaning the market has fallen which is common if you rented in spring but move out in winter) the difference must be made up. Rent must be kept current until we find a suitable replacement and because it is an immense amount of work we do have to charge a small amount for the process which is clearly outlined in state law as a fair and standard procedure. The whole process is too complex to outline in a single question but here are crucial documents we use. Lease Break Information for Our Residents.pdf