5 Red Flags to Look Out For in a Lease Agreement
Before you sign your rental agreement take the time to read this guide so you can make sure your agreement is fair and good!
Signing a lease agreement as a renter may not be as serious a matter as signing your marriage papers but it’s NOT a trivial, nickel-and-dime matter either.
The lease agreement that you’re presented with is a binding document in a court of law.
And… trifling with it may be one of your worst mistakes in life.
But many don’t realize that.
Being caught in the excitement and haste of moving into a new home many renters don’t bother with auditing the details of their rental agreement…
Never realizing they might be signing themselves into REAL trouble!
So, below are the FIVE red flags to watch out for before you sign your lease agreement. They are dead important so make sure you read through them all!
1) Any Unfamiliar Numbers?
Well, most of the renters are not, obviously, experts in analyzing a lease document with all its puzzling numbers.
Not everyone is a numbers guy you see…
And, since a lease paper is loaded with tons of dates, addresses & monetary amounts many renters simply let them go without tracing each figure back to its source.
That is where they dig their own grave!
If you choose to go without a property broker make sure you check every number shown in the lease.
Don’t hesitate to inquire into any suspicious/unfamiliar charges that may show up in the agreement.
But, of course, it’s safest to hire a real estate lawyer and be insulated from all sorts of nasty number games that may catch up with you later!
2) The Lease Seems Incomplete and Non-standard
Sometimes a lease may seem non-standard as if there’s something out of place there.
Look… shady landlords try out different ways to fiddle with a lease document for their ulterior motives.
But you’ll never be able to spot any discrepancies until and unless you KNOW inside out what a standard lease agreement for your state (or province) looks like…
So, make sure you’re thoroughly familiar with the landlord and tenant act in force in your state.
Your local housing authority may help you with that…
3) Strange Clauses
Now, that’s a red flag that you MUST look out for!
Because you’d never want to be held hostage by strange, invasive, absurd, insanely restrictive, or selfish clauses that a wolfish type of landlord can build into the contract.
And, if you went on with such a clause on paper you can imagine the trouble you’ll be landing…
Let’s give you some examples of such clauses:
“The tenant is responsible for all the repairs”
“The landlord has full access into the house at any time”
“The landlord has the right to change any provision in the lease…”
See the risk there?
So, you’d better double-check to see that all the clauses included are acceptable to you.
And, if you find an unacceptable clause (or clauses) don’t balk at putting it to the landlord straightaway.
If things don’t take a turn for the better from there – walk away from the deal!
4) The Source of the Document
Most landlords don’t make up the tenants’ rental agreement from scratch. In fact, they just download the easily available generic lease contracts on the internet.
So, before you sign up make sure the contract is customized and in line with the laws of your state, city, county or neighborhood…
Make sure the contract is coming from the source which is approved by the local rental association.
If you find any unusual points in the contract talk about them with the landlord or seek help from a local attorney to be clear on what should or shouldn’t be there in the agreement.
5) HOA Rules Not Mentioned
Sometimes a landlord may not let you in on the HOA rules and so you then get an off-putting surprise after you’ve signed the deal.
The HOA rules can be very irksome to many since they’ll send you back to your school days.
Like, you can’t paint your house a particular color, you can’t park here, do this, don’t do that, blah blah blah…
Although, HOA rules are for the harmony of a housing society many won’t just get along with them.
So, if the landlord hasn’t handed you a copy of the HOA rules attached with the contract, ask for it and before you sign anything review the HOA terms and conditions thoroughly!
5 Red Flags to Look Out For in a Lease Agreement
Before you sign your rental agreement take the time to read this guide so you can make sure your agreement is fair and good!
Signing a lease agreement as a renter may not be as serious a matter as signing your marriage papers but it’s NOT a trivial, nickel-and-dime matter either.
The lease agreement that you’re presented with is a binding document in a court of law.
And… trifling with it may be one of your worst mistakes in life.
But many don’t realize that.
Being caught in the excitement and haste of moving into a new home many renters don’t bother with auditing the details of their rental agreement…
Never realizing they might be signing themselves into REAL trouble!
So, below are the FIVE red flags to watch out for before you sign your lease agreement. They are dead important so make sure you read through them all!
1) Any Unfamiliar Numbers?
Well, most of the renters are not, obviously, experts in analyzing a lease document with all its puzzling numbers.
Not everyone is a numbers guy you see…
And, since a lease paper is loaded with tons of dates, addresses & monetary amounts many renters simply let them go without tracing each figure back to its source.
That is where they dig their own grave!
If you choose to go without a property broker make sure you check every number showing in the lease.
Don’t hesitate to inquire into any suspicious/unfamiliar charges that may show up in the agreement.
But, of course, it’s safest to hire a real estate lawyer and be insulated from all sorts of nasty number games that may catch up with you later!
2) The Lease Seems Incomplete and Non-standard
Sometimes a lease may seem non-standard as if there’s something out of place there.
Look… shady landlords try out different ways to fiddle with a lease document for their ulterior motives.
But you’ll never be able to spot any discrepancies until and unless you KNOW inside out what a standard lease agreement for your state (or province) looks like…
So, make sure you’re thoroughly familiar with the landlord and tenant act in force in your state.
Your local housing authority may help you with that…
3) Strange Clauses
Now, that’s a red flag that you MUST look out for!
Because you’d never want to be held hostage by strange, invasive, absurd, insanely restrictive, or selfish clauses that a wolfish type of landlord can build into the contract.
And, if you went on with such a clause on paper you can imagine the trouble you’ll be landing…
Let’s give you some examples of such clauses:
“The tenant is responsible for all the repairs”
“The landlord has full access into the house at any time”
“The landlord has the right to change any provision in the lease…”
See the risk there?
So, you’d better double-check to see that all the clauses included are acceptable to you.
And, if you find an unacceptable clause (or clauses) don’t balk at putting it to the landlord straightaway.
If things don’t take a turn for the better from there – walk away from the deal!
4) The Source of the Document
Most landlords don’t make up the tenants’ rental agreement from scratch. In fact, they just download the easily available generic lease contracts on the internet.
So, before you sign up make sure the contract is customized and in line with the laws of your state, city, county or neighborhood…
Make sure the contract is coming from the source which is approved by the local rental association.
If you find any unusual points in the contract talk about them with the landlord or seek help from a local attorney to be clear on what should or shouldn’t be there in the agreement.
5) HOA Rules Not Mentioned
Sometimes a landlord may not let you in on the HOA rules and so you then get an off-putting surprise after you’ve signed the deal.
The HOA rules can be very irksome to many since they’ll send you back to your school days.
Like, you can’t paint your house a particular color, you can’t park here, do this, don’t do that, blah blah blah…
Although, HOA rules are for the harmony of a housing society many won’t just get along with them.
So, if the landlord hasn’t handed you a copy of the HOA rules attached with the contract, ask for it, and before you sign anything review the HOA terms and conditions thoroughly!