How to read a rental lease: 10 clauses to check before you sign
A lease is a contract you’ll live with for months or years. These are the parts most worth reading slowly.
Rental laws are different in every country and often every city, so this guide covers what to look for, not what is legal where you live. If a clause worries you, ask a local tenant advice service.
1. Rent and when it’s due
Check the amount, the due date, how to pay, and whether there is a grace period before a late fee.
2. Rent increases
Does the lease say when and by how much rent can go up? Look for words like “adjustment” or “review.”
3. The deposit
How much it is, where it is held, and the conditions for getting it back. Ask for an inventory or move-in report and take dated photos of every room on your first day.
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4. Length of the lease
Note the start and end dates. Is it a fixed term, or month to month?
5. Automatic renewal
Some leases renew automatically unless you give notice by a certain date, sometimes 60 or 90 days before the end. Put that date in your calendar.
6. Ending the lease early
What happens if you need to leave early? Look for early termination fees or a requirement to keep paying until a new tenant is found.
7. Repairs and maintenance
Who fixes what, and how quickly? How do you report a problem? Watch for clauses that make you responsible for major repairs.
8. Fees and extra costs
Utilities, parking, pet fees, cleaning fees when you move out, service charges. Add these to the rent to see what you will really pay each month.
9. Rules and restrictions
Pets, guests, subletting, smoking, decorating, noise. Make sure you can live with them.
10. Landlord entry
How much notice the landlord must give before entering, except in emergencies.
Red flags
- Blank spaces that could be filled in later. Ask for them to be completed or crossed out before you sign.
- Pressure to sign immediately without reading.
- Requests to pay a deposit before you’ve seen the property or the lease, especially by wire transfer. This is a common rental scam.
- Clauses that seem to waive all your rights or all of the landlord’s responsibilities.
Tip: Ask for a copy of the lease a few days before signing, so you have time to read it calmly at home.
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