A great Lease Agreement is essential to make sure that you’re protected as a Landlord and that you get the most out of your rental property. But, many Landlords wonder about what additional addenda, disclosures, or documents their lease package should include.
Creating a complete Lease package – including the Lease, necessary disclosures, applicable addenda, and additional resources – can help to ensure that Tenants are fully informed before move-in and Landlords are fully protected when they hand over legal possession of their rental property.
With that in mind, here are a few important documents that can help to create a great Lease Package.
Legally Required Disclosures
It’s important to include any legally required disclosures. These vary from state to state, but lead-based paint disclosures are required for all properties built before 1978. Additionally, some properties built before 1981 are required to have asbestos disclosures.
Before a Tenant moves in, it’s important to make sure that you have included all required disclosures. The good news is that ezLandlordform’s State Assist makes this simple by showing Landlords all disclosures that are required in their state.
Tenant’s Waiver of Insurance
In many states, Landlords can require Tenants to get renters insurance. However, this is not the case in all states. If you’re in a state where you can’t require it and a Tenant opts to not get renter’s insurance, it’s a good idea to use a Tenant’s Waiver of Insurance.
This waiver is a way to document that you encouraged the Tenant to get renter’s insurance, clarify that the Landlord’s insurance does not cover the Tenant’s property, and highlight that the Landlord is not responsible for any damage or loss of the Tenant’s property.
Pet Addendum
While your Lease likely addresses the issue of whether or not pets are allowed, it’s still a good idea to include a Pet Addendum that provides more specifics about which pets are allowed and expectations for pets on the property. This not only deals with specifics about size, breed, and type of animals permitted, but also sets clear expectations for pet behaviors, animal care, and policies regarding pet-related damage.
Smoking-Free Property Addendum
Smoking can cause substantial damage to a property and can make it harder to rent the property in the future. As a result, many Landlords are opting to include a term in the Lease prohibiting smoking.
In addition, it’s also a good idea to include a Smoking-Free Property Addendum to outline all rules, policies, and penalties surrounding smoking when on the premises of the rental property.
Tenant Guest Policy
Guests can be a stressful topic for Landlords. While some guests are inevitable, it’s a good idea to have a Tenant Guest Policy in place to limit the number of people allowed on the property at one time and to avoid long-term guests. This helps to avoid property damage, prevent fire hazards, and set clear boundaries for overnight guests.
Move-In/Move-Out Walkthrough Checklist
A move-in/move-out checklist takes the stress out of walkthroughs and makes the process more transparent for Tenants. Using this document makes sure that there are no surprises at move-out and allows Landlords to thoroughly document the condition of the property. It’s a good way to ensure that the property stays in good condition while also making sure that move-in and move-out procedures are communicated to Tenants and that the procedures are fair.
Informative Documents
Finally, it’s a good idea to include some informative documents as part of the Lease package. The purpose of doing this is to ensure that Tenants have all of the necessary information to take care of your rental property. The more prepared Tenants are when they take legal possession of the property, the better the experience for everyone. To that end, here are a few documents that are helpful to include:
- A Welcome Letter highlighting some basic property rules and policies
- Tips for Fire Safety
- Trash and Recycling Information
- Energy-Saving Tips
- A Move-Out Cleaning Guide
While a great Lease is a must, it’s also important to create a complete Lease Package that should include all of the above. This ensures that you’ve given Tenants all the information they need to handle any issue that might arise with the rental property. Visit ezLandlordforms.com to create your comprehensive Lease Package
What would be a reasonable number of people allowed on the property? My renters have “guests” each night and sometime there are 5-8 additional cars in the driveway. Also, there is a woman wno is there every night when she gets home from work. She leaves around 9 to 10 and goes somewhere else to sleep. She is there every weekend also.