Contracts/Assignment

Defined

An assignment in real estate is the complete transfer of the right to possess property. With an assignment, the assignor transfers the complete remainder of the interest to the assignee. The assignor must not retain any sort of reversionary interest in the right to possess. The assignee's interest must abut the interest of the next person to have the right to possession.

Liability of Assignee

The liability of the assignee depends upon the the contract formed when the assignment takes place. However, in general, the assignee has privity of estate with a lessor. With privity of estate comes the duty to perform certain obligations under covenant, e.g. pay rent.

If the assignor agrees to continue paying rent to the lessor and subsequently defaults, the lessor can sue both the assignor under the original contract signed with the lessor as well as the assignee because by taking possession of the property interest, the assignee has obligated himself to perform duties under covenant such as the payment of rent.