Which of the following best describes a situation leading to constructive eviction?

Constructive eviction occurs when a landlord's actions or inactions make the property uninhabitable or significantly interfere with the tenant's ability to use and enjoy the leased premises, effectively forcing the tenant to leave. In this case, the situation where the landlord neglects essential repairs best embodies this definition.

If a landlord does not address critical repairs, such as plumbing issues, heating failures, or safety concerns, the tenant may find the living conditions intolerable. This lack of maintenance can disrupt the tenant's use of the property, leading them to feel they have no choice but to vacate, even if the landlord has not formally evicted them. The tenant might have grounds to terminate the lease and potentially seek damages for this constructive eviction.

The other situations primarily revolve around the tenant's actions or contractual matters. Failing to pay rent relates to a breach of lease on the tenant's part, the expiration of a lease refers to a natural end of tenancy agreement terms, and subleasing without permission involves a violation of lease terms that does not directly affect the habitability of the property. Each of these scenarios does not encapsulate the idea of constructive eviction as clearly as the issue of neglected essential repairs by the landlord.