Rental Agreement Doc

Landlords and tenants, cats and dogs, hippies and yuppies ... some things are right for confrontation. Tenants and owners are always disagree about something or other, and when they do, where do they start? The lease, of course, which means you need a solid lease agreement that gives your interests.

What makes a strong agreement to rent?

The most important (and forgotten) aspect of a lease is to know if it complies with all applicable laws between owners and tenants. Since each state has its own laws landlord-tenant, it means you need a state agreement specific rental. Sometimes, states offer them on their websites, but most often, the owners buy property lawyers or websites specializing in proprietary forms (see resource box for an example).

The variables used as rental amount, duration, names of tenants, etc. must be included of course, but there are lots of other variables that need attention as well. What is your policy on pets? Sublet? Noise? Criminal activity? Clean? You get the idea.

A particularly controversial issue is overdue lease payments. When a payment become late? What late fees? These are generally governed by the laws between landlords and tenants and the state varies by province, which is another reason to use a specific state lease covering these issues.

Maintenance and repairs is another major area of friction for most landlords and tenants. Who is responsible if the toilet is clogged? What if a problem develops cockroach? A lease agreement will specify what kind of high maintenance and repairs are charged to the owner and the tenants, so there's no disagreement on the road who should pay what.

Contrary to forty years ago, a lease is no longer sufficient documents between a landlord and tenant, and today the owners are the hand is worth a small rainforest of paper for the tenants when they sign the lease. Disclosures, addenda, notices, pamphlets ... is a dizzying process. A real property lawyer can guide you properly in providing all the information right to a tenant, or your property management company will take care of it for you. If you do not want to pay for these services, there are websites providing required forms for you based on your condition and needs (see EZ forms owner in resource box). A particularly glaring example of the additional paperwork is required to lead paint disclosures that are required by the federal government and most state governments.

There are other points which should be clearly stated in your lease, such as who pays for which utilities and what constitutes acceptable use of rental property. Think of the time spent on a solid lease agreement as an investment that will avoid a lot of headaches and problems later, and you'll be happier for her owner.