Frequently Asked Questions
To view an apartment or ask a question, simply go to the "Send a Message" section when you are looking at the apartment details. Just make sure you are registered or logged in first! Note that all of our apartments are posted directly by landlords, tenants, and brokers so your message will go directly to the person who posted the apartment.
Leasebreak is a marketplace of short term rentals (1 to 12+ months), “lease-breaks” (those looking to get out of their lease obligation early), sublets, rooms for rent ("shares"), and 12-month rentals. All listings are posted by our users or we receive them from a "feed". We ask all tenants who post "leasebreaks" if they have received their landlord's approval, and their answer is publicly displayed. After registering, tenants, brokers, and landlords can use the site to find or post short term rentals, leasebreaks, sublets, rooms for rent, and 12-month rentals. Note that all inquiries will go directly to whomever posted the listing. Leasebreak is NOT a brokerage firm.
Oh yes. It even surprises us how well it works. You can see recent testimonials on our homepage from users who have recently used Leasebreak to successfully rent their apartments on our website. We used to keep track of ALL testimonials but it just became too much. However, if you want to see some of those old testimonials, fee free to look here for a sample of over 300 customer testimonials!
Yes, you can post and search for an apartment on Leasebreak for free! We are mostly just focused on making Leasebreak the best resource possible :)
It used to be when we launched in 2013. Now leasebreaks are actually a small percentage of our overall listings. There is a filter however where you can search just for leasebreaks if you want. We specialize in all kinds of sublets, especially those under 12 months. However, we also are known to offer some incredible 12 month rentals, especially those when a tenant is breaking his or her lease and the landlord ONLY allows a new 12 month renter to take it over. And often, these apartments are not listed anywhere else!
We take an active role in preventing this type of behavior but unfortunately - like most user generated sites - there is no guarantee that we don’t have people acting in bad faith on our website. However, unlike most websites, we are constantly reviewing the users of our website for suspicious activity, and we have an extremely active community of real estate professionals who are constantly communicating with us. If you see anything suspicious, please contact us immediately at info@leasebreak.com and we will investigate the matter. We tend to suspend any listings while we are investigating them. We also have more info on how you can avoid scams HERE. IMPORTANT: Under no circumstances should you pay any money to anybody for an apartment without physically seeing it yourself or having someone you trust physically see the unit. You should also always make sure you receive the landlord’s approval. If you are taking over a lease, you should ask for a current copy of the lease. Please note that this website does not provide legal advice and Leasebreak is not a law firm. Although we go to great lengths to make sure our information is accurate and useful, we recommend you consult a lawyer if you want legal advice.
Yes, this is required, and the address will be publicy displayed. If we notice that the real address is not provided, we will remove the listing immediately. HOWEVER, note that while we do require you to tell us the real unit number for verification purposes, we do NOT publicly display the unit number.
YES! In "advanced search", simply check "Entire Apartment Only" for the first question.
We have a respected New York City attorney answer this question in our helpful resources section: www.leasebreak.com/helpful-resources
No, Leasebreak is not a brokerage firm but rather a “marketplace” of short term rentals and “leasebreaks”, all posted directly by users. Be careful with other websites as you are searching around the internet. We are noticing more and more websites and masquerading as "no broker fee" websites when really they have their brokerage licenses and are charging "discount brokerage fees". Shady!
All three! Leasebreak was designed with tenants, brokers, and landlords in mind.
Yes, at this point Leasebreak is just in the five boroughs of New York City, with plans to expand in the future! For example, we just recently started allowing sublets from New Jersey to be posted on the website.
No, unfortunately we do not. When you post, the minimum duration for any listing must be at least 30 days.
Ha! Do we need to make money? : ) Well, we would like to make more money someday, but right now we make some money by charging for "featured listings", "premium users", and we partner with agents who want to help tenants either market their apartment, or need help searching for a rental (email info@leasebreak.com for more info). But mostly, we are focusing on just making Leasebreak the best resource possible.
We want only those who have their landlord’s permission to post on our website. We believe the landlord’s permission and cooperation is CRITICAL. Unlike most short term rental websites, we ask anyone posting a listing on our website if they have their landlord’s approval or not, and we publicly display their answer. While we know this system is not foolproof, we believe this is an effective way to make sure the issue of “landlord approval” is up front and center. Again, to repeat, we want only those who have their landlord’s permission to post on our website
We won't charge you, but the "lister" might. If a listing is posting by a broker or a landlord, they may charge a brokerage or management fee. This should be disclosed on the listing, and you can also search for listings which include or exclude brokerage fees.
Leasebreak provides a marketplace and resources to make it as easy as possible to find or post short term rentals or leasebreaks. Our goal is to help “connect” those looking for tenants with those searching for apartments. Once the connection is made, both parties would work out the details over email, phone, and in person. However, for tenants looking to break their lease and find a new tenant, we do believe that brokers can be instrumental in the process. Therefore - with the tenant's permission - we sometimes refer brokers whom we partner with to these tenants.
If you have other questions which you do not see here, please email us at info@leasebreak.com and we will get back to you as soon as we can. We may even add your question to this list of FAQ. Enjoy using Leasebreak!