What to do about intent to renew lease letter?

I received a letter from my rental company saying they need me to finalize my renewal plans in writing as soon as possible. There are 2 options to pick from: (1) I intend to renew my lease and (2) I will not be renewing my lease and will move out by 7/31.





The problem is I don't know if I will or won't. I am trying to find a job back in my home state and it is proving to be difficult. Ideally, I will find a job back home, but if I don't, I want to stay here until I do. Adding another move would be very inconvenient and I'm not even sure if another apartment complex would take someone that is month-to-month right off the bat.





Should I say "I intend to renew my lease"? The letter does not specify an amount of time. One could interpret renewal to mean renewing on a monthly basis. One could also argue that it says "I INTEND," and not "I WILL". There is no mention of rent rates or terms. If I sign this letter, am I legally bound to signing a lease with them?|||Talk to your rental company; explain your situation to them and offer to pay a little more every month in exchange for a shorter lease, or even month-to-month. If you are not absolutely, completely 100% positive you would like to renew your lease, do NOT say that you will (or even "intend" to).





If you respond with "yes, I intend to renew my lease" and then back out, you will be held to all the penalties included with breaking the lease.|||Read your existing lease. Somewhere in there it must mention a date by which you need to contact the landlord if you wish to renew the lease. That date is the only date you need to worry about - not what is one that letter.


Then again, I don't think you have anything to lose by saying you 'intend' to renew.