All this is a reminder to tenants to READ THOROUGHLY the lease before signing. It might be wise, upon agreeing to rent, to ask the LL for a blank copy of the lease to take home and examine it. If a clause looks wrong, you can negotiate alternative language. Don’t be intimidated by the fact that it is preprinted, don’t accept that “we can’t change that”…it is a contract that can be mutually altered by inserting the new language & both parties initialing the change.
There is a honeymoon atmosphere when a new tenant and new LL come to an agreement. They both like each other, they both assume the best will happen, and they both let their guard down. In their future together, crap will happen, and that written and signed document will control what happens. Don’t take it for granted.
I have 34 apartment units, professionally managed, and we start with a 6 or 12 month lease that reverts to month-to-month if neither party gives notice. Some LL’s ask for a new lease upon expiration of the first, but I think that handicaps both parties. The tenant may only want to stay a few more months, and I’d rather keep them for that short a time rather than replace them immediately. At the same time, I want to have a month-to-month arrangement instead of a lease if they turn crappy and I need to give them notice.
