Template residential lease agreement

This is usually anything longer than a week. Limits on guest stay. Landlords might limit overnight guests to keep long-term guests from attaining the station of full-fledged tenants who have not been screened, approved by the landlord or listed on the lease or rental agreement.

No illegal activity. Landlords can limit their potential liability by including a clause prohibiting illegal and disruptive behavior—like using drugs, dealing drugs or causing trouble. If the tenant is involved in any illegal activity, the landlord can terminate their tenancy. Landlords can prohibit all pets, or restrict the types allowed—with the exception of service and emotional support animals.

If a rental is pet-friendly, it is helpful to include pet policies in the lease or rental agreement. Examples of this would be to write out how many pets a tenant can have, what types, breeds, and sizes of animals are allowed. Restrictions on the number of occupants. Landlords will typically set a limit to the number of people who can live in their rental property. Federal law requires that landlords allow two people per bedroom.

Restrictions on the use of the property. Landlords can prohibit or restrict smoking of any kind in their rental property. If the landlord wants to limit smoking, they should include where tenants may smoke. State and local disclosures. Many state and local laws require landlords to disclose documentation, policies, or specific unit information to tenants prior to moving in. Since these laws vary from state to state and sometimes by city or county it is important to have your agreement looked over by a landlord-tenant attorney in your state to guarantee the correct disclosures are included in your lease.

Some disclosure laws impose heavy fines or legal ramifications to landlords if they are not followed. The only federally required landlord disclosure pertains to lead-based. Known as Title X, this disclosure is designed to protect families from exposure to lead from paint, dust, and soil. Section of this law requires the disclosure of known information on lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards before the sale or lease of housing built before Cautious landlords do not allow tenants to sublet their rental property without their written consent.

The lease should state who pays for each utility that services the premises. Generally, a landlord will cover the garbage and water. Tenants normally pay for the internet, cable, gas and electric service. It is unlawful for a landlord to require a tenant to waive any of their rights or place discriminatory conditions in a lease or rental agreement. Illegal provisions may result in the landlord being liable for damages.

Charging penalties instead of fees. A penalty is a means to prevent specific behavior, while the fee is intended to cover losses. Individuals are not legally allowed to charge penalties but they can charge fees.

So basically, while fees are legal, they cannot amount to a penalty. An example of this may be increasing the fee for late payments in order to punish the tenant for paying late. These penalties are not only unenforceable, but they may also violate state and local laws on landlord retaliation. Making the tenant responsible for maintenance and repairs.

This is to make tenants feel that the maintenance and repair responsibilities are theirs. Watch for language stating the tenant is responsible for maintenance and repairs — it is illegal and unenforceable. Warranty of habitability. Every state has specific health and safety codes that provide minimum standards for rental units. Do not sign a lease without a clause requiring the landlord to keep the unit habitable.

Security deposit. Security deposit deductions are the most common cause of lease disagreements. Tenants cannot be charged for damage they did not cause, costs the landlord did not incur, or normal wear and tear of the property. Many states regulate how a landlord can use a security deposit. Before signing a lease or rental agreement, make sure that it does not contain language that deviates from your state and local laws.

Landlord Licenses and Leases. In Washington, D. C landlords are required to obtain a rental license and business license D. However, due to the difficulty of enforcing the conditions and proving what was agreed-upon, they should only be used in situations where the parties have extreme trust in one another family, for example , or are leasing a property that the landlord will also share a single room, for instance.

Although commonly used to mean the same thing, they differ in the term duration of their contracts. Notarization is the process of having a certified third 3rd party officially verify a signature on a legal document. Generally, lease agreements do not have to be notarized. However, certain states, such as Ohio, require leases longer than three 3 years to be certified by a Notary Public. For a tenant, it also depends on the written lease, but also state law, which can provide the tenant with room for exiting the lease without incurring damages and other costs.

Arbitration — The act of including a third 3rd party to listen to an argument, who will then make a final decision. Arbitrator — The person involved in arbitration that makes the final decision regarding a dispute. Also known as subleasing. Co-tenant — A roommate; a tenant that shares the same rental property with another tenant.

Escrow account — In renting, an escrow account is a bank account that tenants deposit their rent into. Eviction — The forced act of removing one 1 or more tenant s from a unit due to their non-compliance with the lease. Only used when the tenant s breached the lease. Invited by the tenant s. Landlord — The party responsible for managing the rental and overseeing the tenant s. Lock-out — The act of preventing tenant s from entering a rental unit via changing the locks or similar action.

Used when tenant s are late on rental payments. Typically an illegal action. Mediation — Used for resolving disputes.

Includes a third 3rd party that listens to the arguments of both sides and assists them in coming to a mutual decision. A mistake due to an obviously unreasonable decision. Periodic Tenancy — A type of short-term lease that has no pre-defined end-date. Can be terminated by the landlord or tenant so long appropriate notice is given. Common in large cities. Legally permitted in some states. Rental Period — The length of time between rent payments.

Can be a year, a month, a week, or another pre-determined timeframe. Security Deposit — A monetary payment given from tenants to a landlord at the start of the lease. Used for covering unexpected damage, missed rental payments, and more. Landlords are required to return the deposit at the end of the lease if no deductions need to be made. Sublease — The act of introducing a second 2nd tenant to live in the property alongside, or in replacement of, the original tenant.

Sublessee — The individual living in the property in replacement of the sublessor. Sublessor — The original tenant to a rental property. Termination notice for periodic leases — A written notice delivered by the landlord or tenant signifying they wish to terminate the lease agreement. Typically provided thirty 30 days in advance of the next rental payment. Warranty of habitability — A guarantee that the rental property will be livable for tenants for the full length of the lease term. In the provided fields, enter the date that the parties are completing the document, followed by the full names of the Landlord and Tenant s.

Enter the number of days that can pass before the agreement is terminated and eviction proceedings begin. Most states have a required amount of days that need to pass before the eviction process can begin.

Enter the day of the month after which a late charge will be issued, along with the monetary amount of the late charge.

For any returned checks, enter the dollar amount charge that will be billed to the tenant. Landlord will need to list all utilities that will be paid for. Any absent utilities are the responsibility of the tenant s. In the underlined field, the Landlord will need to enter the full security deposit amount that the tenant s will need to pay before moving into the property. Here, the Landlord will need to specify the number of days the tenant can remain absent from the property without paying rent or removing possessions, until it will be considered abandonment.

Landlord states the length of time the tenant has to ensure all smoke detectors are functioning in the premises.

The state-specific mandated provisions for the lease agreement. Can vary widely depending on the state in which the agreement is being completed. In the provided fields, both the Landlord and Tenant s must write their full printed names and dated signatures.

Lease Agreement Templates. Email Delivery. Word Download. RTF Download. Lease-to-Own pdf word. Month-to-Month pdf word. Rental Application pdf word. Roommate pdf word. Simple 1 Page pdf word. Specify their names, citizenship, along with their complete addresses. Step 3: Give a Description of the Property After entering the details of both the parties, provide a description of the property along with its location details.

Make sure your description is detailed and addresses the technicalities as well. Step 4: List the Terms Now, list the terms of the leased property. Mention the duration of the agreement period and the rental deposit that has to be paid on a given time period basis. The representations and warranties, utilities and other facilities have to also be mentioned clearly. You can also go through our collection of property lease agreement templates.

Step 5: Provide the Security Deposit and Payment Details Lastly, provide the security deposit details along with the payment terms. Mention the conditions under which the security deposit will be used in case damages have occurred to the property. State the various terms associated with the payment details and end the agreement by leaving space for the signature. It has to be noted that both the parties need to sign the agreement in order for it to be effective. Printable Residential Lease Agreement wced.

What constitutes a Residential Lease Agreement? A residential Lease Agreement Template generally starts with a legal declaration acknowledging the lease contract between the landlord lessor and tenant lessee.