what's the shortest apartment lease most places offer?

[holden j caufield]

There's a possibility I'll be going to europe for and the timeframe is uncertain so I don't want to get hooked into anything.

 

[FoBoT]

depends on the area, sometimes you can find a place that'll go month to month, but they are usually less nice
otherwise 6 or 12 months is standard
maybe you can find a room mate situation that'll be more flexible

 

[theknight571]

I was on a month to month "lease" for awhile... had to give 30 days notice to move out.

 

[olds]

Month to month

 

[mshan]

Month to month, at least 30 day notice, and you should expect to pay a higher monthly rent vs. that with a 6 - 12 month lease.




edit: it is probably determined by laws in your state, but I would specifically find out if 30 day notice is as of day landlord receives official notice, or at least 30 days after next first of the month (I suspect first, but am not sure). And you should find out what penalty for breaking a 6 month lease is then weigh cost of each option based upon best educated guess of how many months you are likely to be away.

 

[Riverhound777]

Depends on the area. Here in Santa Barbara, CA where there are lots of college students and high cost of living, there are tons of places to rent, and most are month to month. Up in the Central Valley where I use to live, there were a lot less places to rent, and pretty much all of them were a year lease. But it was a hell of a lot cheaper (and I gladly pay more to live in SB )