The following is an article intended to educate readers about key terms to expect or include in a typical lease agreement.

The Jayson Law Group LLC does not want to see you running into endless problems because of an incomplete lease agreement. In order to help you avoid disputes, we have provided this article listing some of the key provisions that every lease agreement should include:

Names and addresses of tenants and landlord

Know who you are renting to and let them know how to contact you. The tenant may be referred to as the “lessee,” the landlord as the “lessor,” and both can be called “parties” to the agreement. If a property manager or company legally operates on the landlord’s behalf, their name and address should also appear on the agreement. Landlords should also expect the names of all tenants living in the rental unit over the age of 18. Rules on guest stays should also be outlined within a rental agreement. 

Rental property details

The lease agreement should also include details about furnishing, parking spaces, or storage areas. The property is often called “the premises.” A landlord can restrict how you use the property (e.g. no businesses operated out of the rental unit, no waterbeds, floor plants, pets except for service, etc.) and the behavior of a tenant and their guests (in order to uphold local laws and ordinances).

Term of the Tenancy

The term is the time length of the rental. While many leases have a term of one year, some can be month-to-month tenancies—this should be defined in the lease. The document should also specify the start and end dates.

Rent 

Leases should specify the amount of rent due each month, when it is due, where the rent should be paid, acceptable forms of payment, late fees, and other standard fees. It is illegal for a landlord to quote a higher rent rate based on gender, race, or other group characteristic. However, there is no limit to how much rent a landlord can charge (except in rent-controlled areas, in which case there are different standards, or where a town has an ordinance dictating rental rates and increases).

Deposits

A rental or lease agreement should include a dollar amount and details regarding security and cleaning deposits and last month’s rent, including under what circumstances they will be used by the landlord and when/if they will be returned in part or in full. In addition, landlords must keep security deposit funds in an interest-bearing account for the tenant and must inform each contributing tenant in writing of certain information relating to the security deposit. 

Utilities

In a rental or lease agreement the landlord should specifically state who pays for which utilities. Normally, the landlord pays for garbage and sometimes water, and the tenant pays for gas and electricity

Condition of the rental unit

A lease agreement usually includes a statement in which the lessee agrees to alert the landlord of any defective or dangerous condition and the landlord has provided a habitable condition just prior to the tenant moving in.  The Jayson Law Group LLC recommends that prior to moving in both the landlord and tenant take pictures of the condition of the property.

Tenant’s repair and maintenance duties

Rental agreements should state what the tenant is and is not allowed to do in the way of repairs. For example, the tenant may not be allowed to paint walls or hang shelves without the landlord’s permission. But the tenant is responsible for keeping the premises clean and in good condition and they will reimburse the landlord for damage caused by the tenant’s abuse or neglect. The rental agreement will also outline when and how a landlord may enter a rented unit, for example, to make emergency repairs, etc.

Grounds for termination of tenancy

Often there is a general clause stating that violation of the lease agreement by the tenant or their guests is grounds for terminating the tenancy or eviction. Should there be a legal dispute or litigation your rental agreement should specify who will pay the costs of a lawsuit that arises over the meaning or implementation of any part of a rental agreement.

Notices

There may also be a Notices clause in the lease agreement describing how any and all notices should be given by the landlord and the tenant during the length of the tenancy.  The Jayson Law Group LLC recommends that if such a clause is used, that all notices should be given in writing between the two parties.Failure to include legally required notices can result in consumer fraud lawsuits and other regulatory action.