Free Lease Agreement vs Paid Lease Agreement
If you are searching to get a free lease agreement, then you are definitely not alone. Every day, numerous value-minded and fast-paced property owners not to mention property owners search the back highways and alleyways of the internet looking to purchase a free lease agreement that they will easily print out, fill out, and give over to their new tenants along with the keys to the rental property.
“You get what you pay for”
Should you research long enough, you will most likely be able to uncover a free lease agreement or cheap generic contract on the net. However, in advance of when you fill it out, take a minute to realistically consider the potential backlashes. Keep in mind the old adage that says, “You get what you pay for”? Well, if you compromise for a plain-looking free lease agreement, you might just get considerably more than you bargained for — much more. A lease agreement is a legal commitment that sets forth the conditions of the arrangement between you and your tenant. Fundamentally, you are counting on this document to create the guidelines that will determine your comprehensive partnership with your tenant.
There are plenty of websites that boast of a free lease agreement. They are a dime a dozen online that do not cover much more than the contact information for the property owner and tenants. If you are fortuitous, you might come across one that has a space for the lease amount and due date. In other words, these free lease agreements generally leave a lot to be desired.
Renters’ legal rights
Throughout the last several decades, the courts have become a lot more friendly to the cause of renters’ legal rights. Many of the property owners who are hauled in front of a judge by a dissatisfied renter — or who file a claim to obtain back rent from a non-paying tenant — are finding themselves out of luck. When in doubt, increasing numbers of courts are instantly siding with the renter.
When you rely on a free lease agreement that is imprecise, short, or rudimentary, you are putting your property or home, your investment, and your whole business in danger. In legal terms, a legally binding contract that is skimpy or insufficient is not worth the paper that it is written on.
important legal clauses left out
The kind of simple free lease agreements that you can find online is ordinarily chock full of ambivalence, important legal clauses left out, ambiguousness, and even straight-up mistakes. Basically, they are not exactly the type of thing that is always going to sway the court in your favor if you wind up in the courtroom. If it is not distinctively explained in the agreement, the odds are good that the court will end up siding with your renter.
Let us admit it — to stay highly profitable, property owners and property managers have to constantly be on the lookout for ways to save money. That means patiently waiting for sales at do-it-yourself shops, going for mid-grade paint and furnishings, and keeping an eye out for reputable vendors that will not charge exorbitant fees.
What it does not have to mean, then again, is skimping on your lease contract. There are lots of intelligent ways for you to save cash, however, this is not one of them. Think about it as an investment — the dollars you pay out now on a complete, properly executed lease agreement could save you thousands of dollars as time goes on.