> It seems like a minority case and any decent job which may require relocation or unpredictable permanence offers moving assistance that handles breaking lease

> It seems like a minority case and any decent job which may require relocation or unpredictable permanence offers moving assistance that handles breaking leases. first of all, this is pretty uncommon outside of relatively high-paying professional gigs. the average person's idea of a "decent job" is probably quite different from mine or yours. also not all leases have a buy-out clause. you might be on the hook for the entire remaining term of the lease, which, on the margin, can change a new employer's willingness to pay. I actually just had this situation with my previous roommate. we had just signed a new one-year lease when he got an offer. they almost declined to pay out his share of 11 months' rent when they learned there was no buyout clause. this was a tech company hiring him as an SWE. I don't know what share of short-term renters are doing it out of necessity, but I do have several friends that are in this position. I'll use one of them as an example. he dropped out of school with about a year's worth of credits left, so most white-collar positions are not on the table for him. he currently works in a restaurant, but he has a worsening health condition that makes this a short term option at best. he's trying to get into a trade that would be at least a little better for his health, but not having a lot of luck at the moment. basically he needs to be ready to get up and go at a moments notice to anywhere he can find better work.