I am renting from someone here in Lexington, Kentucky where my wife and I evacuated after Hurricane Katrina. Thing went well, until about a month ago, the landlord informed me that he and his wife were selling the house, but he said he "wouldn't do that until our lease was up in September." But I told him that we signed the year lease in October. So, my wife and I were VERY stressed over this, seeing as how less than a year before, we were trapped in the Superdome, and were basically homeless and now it could happen again, because we really didnt have the money to put a down payment on an apartment. But then we had hope that we would have enough time to raise the money by October. But what do you know, the landlord calls my wife and tells her that he is putting the house for sale this week, and would be by with a For Sale sign, he insisted a 2nd time that the lease is up in September. Everytime we look at that sign we kept thinking we are gonna lose everything again, we are gonna be homeless. Plus we would suffer the indignity of having prospective buyers come over looking thoughout the house that we are still living in. We felt as if he was trying to put us in a situation where we would have to leave. We asked him to allow us out of the lease, since miraculously he remembered that the lease is up in October. He agreed if we paid him the rent which was late and a check for the utilities.

But we could not pay that and be able to afford a down payment on apartment. So, I made the wrong decision for the right reason, and informed him that we were not going to make rent and we would leave the house. I also included a promissary note for the back rent and a check for the utilities as a sign of good faith that I would pay, as we always have, even paying him on a couple of occasions a month or two ahead.

He has NEVER fixed anything on the list that I gave him 10 days after I moved in. He promised to fix, closet doors (one of which nearly fell on my computer and crushed my thumb, paint, and fix holes in the ceiling when the weather got warmer. (I still haven't figured that out.)

My question is, do I have any legal recourse or protection in this matter?